On Love: Agape!
by PepperminPatti
Summary: After the new Yuri Nikiforov gets home from his wedding, he finds out that he is expecting! But unfortunately, things aren't going so well on Yurio's side of the story. If the science part is messing you up, just come up with whatever explanation works best for you. I DONT OWN ANY OF THE SONGS I USE. Rated T for mild swearing. Credit to http:/aminoapps.com/p/a1v94b for the cover ar
1. Prolouge

_**Hi, everyone!!! Thank you so much for reading my work, and I just want to say that this is going to be a mix of a fluff/serious fic. also, I'm changing a few things that were cannon/widely-accepted-as-cannon-but-not-actually-cannon, so please don't kill me, Thanks again for reading!!!**_

 _Hasetsu Ice Castle, Hasetsu Japan, April 2016_

 _Viktor glided and jumped across the ice in such an eros manner that made Yuri Katsuki feel in a way that he had never felt toward his coach. The Spanish-inspired song made Viktor's eyes look hungry, and Yuri could nearly feel the sexual pleasure radiating from Viktor._

 _"This routine has so much_ Eros _I think it might impregnate me!" Yuri anxiously thought to himself. "There is no way_ I _could ever impress Viktor the way he impresses me doing this routine!"_

 _La Inglesa de Santa Maria de Mar, Barcelona Spain, December 20th, 2016_

 _The Christmas choir sang a song that neither Vikor nor Yuri understood the words to. The lights of the magnificent cathedral shone out of the stained-glass windows, illuminating the two men. Viktor's hand trembled, which in turn made the jewelry bag that he was holding shake. His chest felt tight, his feet felt like they were glued to the floor. Viktor had never felt this nervous in his entire life. Was this how Yuri felt before performances?But he couldn't let Yuri see him nervous, not this soon before the Grand Prix Final._

 _"Vikor, are you alright?" Yuri questioned, wearing a look of concern and confusion._

 _"Yes, Yuri," Vikor answered, flashing a weak smile. He took a deep breath and took both of Yuri's hands. "Yuri Katsuki, when I First saw you, you were a mess. You had suffered a humiliating defeat at the Grand Prix Final. You Were very drunk, and begged me to come home with you" Viktor said in a serious voice. He stared straight into yuri's warm, shalt fear-struck, chocolate eyes. They were so beautiful, that Vikor could easily stare at them all day._

 _"I wrote you off as a sad failure of a skater and went on with my life. Then, the video of you skating,y routine went viral. The way you skated inspired me to quit my career as a competitive skater to become a coach. Your coach. And Ever since, you haven't stopped inspiring me. I know I've made mistakes, I know I get drunk too much. And I don't think I've ever said this sober, but I love you." Vikor stated, gripping Yuri's hands tighter. Yuri's eyes grew wider than saucers, and Viktor could see what he believed to be relief._

 _"I love you to Viktor," Yuri responded. "And I can't thank you enough for being my coach, so here y-" Yuri started to reach for an identical jewelry bag, but Vikor grabbed his hand before he could._

 _"I'm Not talking about_ Agape _love!" Vikor snapped, bits of tears starting to swell up in his vibrant blue eyes._

 _"I know." yuri retorted. The two men stared into each other's eyes, and Viktor continues his soliloquy_

 _"My life has been so much better since I've been with you. I've gon on the best adventure that anyone could ask for. When I had to go back to Japan, It nearly destroyed me not being able to see your face. I can't imagine ever having to do that again. So, Yuri Katsuki, Figure skater of with the world's biggest heart, Silver medalist at the Cup of China, Sexy Pork Cutlet Bowl, will you Marry me?" Viktor proposed._

 _If Yuri's eyes had gotten any wider they would have exploded. His jaw seemed to lose all control, and nearly dropped to the floor, but he quickly covered it with is hands. Viktor Proposed? He had never expected that from his coach, but at the same time, it felt as if he had been waiting for this his entire life. So with a huge smile, Yuri nodded yes._

 _"Let's Just wait until after I win gold to announce it" Yuri giggled._

 _Viktor laughed, and as the Choir's voices rose, singing "¡_ Al llegar blanca Navidad _!" The newly engaged couple kissed._


	2. Chapter 1

February 2017, Hasetsu Japan

Hi, I'm The new Yuri Nikiforov, formerly known as Yuri Kasikui. 2 months ago, Viktor, my coach, and secret crush, proposed to me in Barcelona Spain!!! We decided to get married in Viktor's' hometown of St.Petersburg, but to live in Hasetsu for the time being. Even though Viktor insisted that everything was fine, and he loved Japan, it still felt to me like he was getting the short end of the stick, so I decided to take his Last name. But ever since we came back to Japan, I have been really nauseous.

"Where ya goin' Yuri?" the triples tauntingly chanted. I had just left the inn and was on my way to the doctor. I was hoping I wouldn't run into anyone I know, but it's a bit late for that now.

"Hi, girls" I nervously replied, running my hands anxiously through my hair. "I'm just heading to the doctor, it's nothing to worry about." Or post about. I thought to myself. The last thing I want is to be pulled into another media circus.

"I heard he was puking his guts out!" Axel whispered to her sisters, her pigtails bouncing

"Yeah, I heard he turned down a Pork Cutlet Bowl!" Luz added

"Are you serious?! I'm gonna post it" Loop replied, pulling a cell phone out of her pink pocket.

I flailed my arms around trying to shush them."I'm sure it's just a stomach bug wedontneedtopostanything!!" Thankfully for me, Loop put her phone away, but the girls giggled, and nothing good can come of that giggle.

The doctor's office was very clean and white. White linoleum floors, white wallpaper, white face makes, white ceiling, and bright white lights seemed to make the waiting room glow. I pulled out my phone and saw a text from Viktor

Vikor: Has the Doctor seen you yet?

Me: Nope, still in the waiting room

Viktor: Make sure to text me as soon as you know what's wrong

Me: I think it's just a stomach bug

Viktor: perhaps you ate something that didn't agree with you in Russia? You haven't been yourself since we got back

Me: Don't worry Viktor

Viktor: Of course I'm going to worry. My little piggy has been sick

I smiled at that last bit. I can always count on Viktor to cheer me up.

Me: Well your little piggy is at the vet know.

Viktor is typing…

"Yuri Nikiforov, the doctor will see you now." A nurse called. I quickly shut off my phone and shoved it into my pocket. Her long black hair tied into a ponytail. Reminds me of When Viktor had his hair long. I followed her to the examination room, where, she took my height, 173 cm, and my weight, which not to my surprise, had gone up a bit since the wedding. She took a stranded blood sample, and a few minutes after she left, the Doctor came in.

Dr.Hamazaki, in standard hospital uniform, slowly walked through the door. Their short red hair was cut very short, and could almost qualify as a buzz cut. They wore a standard doctor uniform, yet somehow Dr.Hamazaki's presence made me somehow nervous. They had been my doctor for as far back as I can remember, from when I got diagnosed with social anxiety in first grade to when I almost broke my ankle in my senior debut.

"Well first off, congratulations Yuri!!! It's not everyday you get married!" Dr.Hamasaki cheered. "You've had a pretty interesting year, haven't you?"

"Yea." I sheepishly replied.

"What seems to be the Problem?" Dr.Hamazaki asked.

"Ever since I've gotten back from Russia a week ago, I've been getting really nauseous," I replied. "I think it's just a stomach bug, but It's been going on for a long time, and my family is starting to get worried." I don't normally go to doctors for small things like stomach bugs, I like to just wait it out.

"Alright, let me take your heart rate," Dr.Hamazaki informed me, with a look or seriousness on their face. They placed their stethoscope on my chest and pushed down a little, which surprisingly hurt. I tried to just hide it, but Dr.Hamazaki saw the slightly confused, singly in pain look on my face. "Whats wrong?"

"I must just be a little more sore than normal," I reply, trying to shake it off with a smile. If they order any more tests, Viktor will start to get really worried, and that is that last thing I want to do to him.

Dr.Hamazaki raised their eyebrows. "Did you say this has been happening since you got back from your wedding?" They asked. I nodded. "I'm going to go take a look at your blood work, alright? I have a hunch, but I won't tell you until I know for sure, because I know how nervous you get."

"Thanks." As they left, I took out my phone and turned it on, and I was greeted with no less than 10 texts from Viktor.

Me: Sorry, I got called in.

Viktor: as your coach and husband, I command you text me next time!

Me: sorry

Viktor: I'm just kidding ;) I wouldn't want you to be rude. Are you finished yet?

Me: No, the doctor just left the room to go check my blood work

Viktor: This is that serious?

Me: I guess. Dr. Hagazami said they had a hunch, but they won't tell because they don't want to upset my anxiety.

Viktor: But won't that just make it worse?

Me: I know, but they have my best interest at heart. 

Me: They're coming back, ttyl

As they entered the room, Dr. Hagazami smiled.

"I have good news for you Yuri," Dr. Hagazami happy tells me while entering the room.

What he says next changed my life forever.


	3. Chapter 2

"Congratulations on your Pregnancy!!!" Viktor, Mom, Dad, Mari, Yuuko, Takeshi, the triplets, and Minako cried, the second I got into the lobby

"I remember my pregnancy with the girls being wonderful." Yukko added, hugging me. "Congratulations, we're so excited for you!"

"Wait, how did you know, I only texted Viktor? And I specifically asked him not to tell anyone yet." I asked, shooting Viktor a look of betrayal.

"It wasn't me this time!" Viktor defended. "It was the girls, they saw my phone. Do you want to kiss and makeup?"

"That would help very much, thank you." I reply, and I give him a kiss, but it goes on for shorter than I would like, thanks to a chorus of "ewww" from the triplets.

"And if we're really going to get specific, it was Pichit who pointed out the rings." Minako muttered under her breath.

"I'm sorry the girls eavesdropped, you must have been really excited to tell us." Yuuko apologized. "But I will make sure they DON'T POST ANYTHING."

"When is the due date?! My first grandchild, this is great!" Mom asked, doing a little danced

"November 28th." I replied. Smack Dab in the center of skating season.

"I made pork Cutlet bowls!" Dad exclaimed. "There's no greater VIKTORy than fatherhood." Viktor, who still hadn't gotten used to Dad jokes, started laughing. Mari and I however, rolled our eyes. "What? Of anything, you two need to start taking notes!"

"Thanks guys." I responded, turning a little red. I swear, by the time the baby comes I will have turned into Bashful the dwarf. We all go into the big dining room, kneel down and start.

"What are your plans for this season? Are you going to be able to skate?" Mari asked through a mouthful of pork.

"No, Dr.Hamazaki gave me explicit orders. If I fall down, the the baby could get hurt. Not to mention I'm due in the middle of the season, and it would be hard to perform quad sau cows with a gigantic stomach." I respond. "Viktor and I haven't really talked about it."

"You really should." Minako butted in. "Viktor's out of a job, unless he wants to back to skating."

Viktor thought for a moment, holding chopsticks full of rice in the air. "I really enjoy coaching, It's a different pace than skating. Not to mention if something serious happens during a competition, I can comeback, and my student will be able to still compete." Me and Viktor looked into eachother's eyes, remembering the time when Macachin got into the steamed buns and Viktor had to leave me in Moscow for the free program of the Rostelecom cup. An awkward moment of silence passed over the table, and everyone else reminisced in the memory, and we were only snapped out of it when Yuuko's phone started to play "On love; agape." Her face turned to a look of horror.

"I'm sorry guys, I need to take this." She said as she stood up. She bowed and left the room.

"What was that about?" Mari snarkily remarked.

"Whatever it is, It's really important. Yuuko's a nice girl, would never have just left the table like that." Mom explained.

"I think something's going on with Yurio. She's been texting and talking with him a lot since the wedding." Takenashi divulged.

"Maybe Yakov's upset that both Yurio and Mila skipped practice to come." I suggested.

"Perhaps. Yakov has never been the type to let his skaters off easily." Viktor voched.

The sliding bamboo door opened, revealing a Yuuko who was as pale as a sheet. Her hand gripped her phone harder than I've her seen her prp anything before.

"What's wrong Mom?" The triples inquired.

"Girls, please go play in the lobby." Yuuko requested.

"But Mom!" The triplets winned

"GIRLS."

"Yes mommy." The triplets got up and huffed out of the room. After Yuuko confirmed that they were indeed in the lobby, she sat down.

"Yurio just got fired from the Russian Skating Association, at Yakov's demand, for coming out as Pansexual." She stated. Minako's eyes grew wider than seems physically possible, and jaw dropped. Mari gasps. Vikor's hand seemed to lose all control, and his chopsticks clatter to the floor. A queasy ignites in my stomach, and I can't tell if it's from the baby or Yakov's terrible actions.

"What?!" Mari gasps.

"Is he still on the other line?" Viktor asked, and Yuuko nodded. Viktor grabbed the phone, and exited the room, taking a kilo a minute in Russian.

"Is that even legal? Takenashi asked.

"Unfortunately. You can't get arrested for being gay in Russia, but other than that, discrimination is completely legal." I informed. "We had to do a lot of research and planning to make sure nothing would go wrong with the wedding."

"VIKTOR, tell Yurio he his welcome to stay here" my father yelled through the thin bamboo wall. Viktor shadow nodded as confirmation.

"I hope everything turns out alright. I can't imagine how terrible he must feel right now." Yuuko remarked, holding her hands over her heart. The bamboo door opened, and Viktor walked in, caringa a stony expression, and sat down.

"I'm going to be Yurio's new coach. He wants to appeal the decision, but if that's not possible, Then he will try another country's organization, most likely the JSF. Yuri, you look green." Viktor, announced. "Let's go before you mess up everyone's meal."

About a half hour later, and my stomach has settled(for now) Viktor and I are back in our room, sprawled across the bed. He's leaving on a pillow, and my head is on his chest. One of his hands lay on my shoulder, and occasionally, one of mine reaches up to feel his perfectly formed, clean-shaven face. The warm scent of cologne makes me want to deeply sigh in pleasure. Nether of us speak, and the the only sound I hear from him is his heavy, constant breathing, Moments like this are my favorite. Sometimes it still even feels surreal that Viktor has even shown an interest in my very existence yet at other times, like right now, I can barely believe I lived without him by my side.

"It's hard to imagine that soon, it won't just be me and you." Viktor states. "Before we know it, a little child will be here. How long do we have to wait to find out if they are a boy or a girl?"

"That happens around 20 weeks. Right now I'm around 1 week." I reply. We both go silent again, unable to shake the events of dinner. "Its terrifying, what's happening with Yurio. Just thinking that someone could be forced to give up their career, all because of who they love."

"I know. But what's really tormenting me is that if Had I not stepped down to coach you, It most likely wouldn't be Yurio in this situation, but me. I would be able to handle it, but he is too young for this to happen." Viktor remarked. I move in closer to him, burying myself into his shirt. I take his hand and place it over my abdomen, right over the baby.

"Viktor. Lets think about how terrible the world is tomorrow. Right now, all I want to be able to cuddle, while nothing is in the way." I requested. "And a kiss, to make up for the one before dinner"

"Your wish is my command, little piggy." Viktor joked, and we both closed our eyes, and kiss, soaking up the experience of each other.


	4. Chapter 3

"Where the hell is Viktor?" Yurio thought to himself, and he walked into the baggage claim. His eyes scanned the room, looking for his new coach. "At least he's not drawing too much attention to himself." The last thing Yurio wanted was for news channels, or if he still had any left, fans to notice him and share his location with the world. To prevent this, He wore a large black sweatshirt, with the hood up, to cover his face, along with sunglasses. He had also put a suitcase cover over his tiger-print bag. A tall man wearing a tan overcoat and a weathered brown backpack walked to the young skater. He had a red beanie hat on, to hide his silver hair, and yellow McDonald's sunglasses, so nobody could see his eyes.

"Viktor, You look ridiculous." Yurio hissed in Russian.

"You asked me to not draw too much attention to you, and this was the only thing I could get on such short notice." Viktor retired.

"We both know you bought those 3 years ago to piss of Yakov." Yurio hissed.

"Sorry, I was trying to cheer you up." Viktor removed the McDonald's sunglasses and stuffed them into his bag. "Let's go get your luggage."

"Great idea, couldn't have thought of a better one myself." Yurio sarcastically commented. He and Viktor silently walked to the baggage terminal, where Yurio reached for his bag, but before he could grab it, Viktor took it out of the winding conveyor belt and pulled it behind him.

"I can carry my own luggage you know," Yurio commented.

"Are you sure? This suitcase is as big as you, and you're already sweating. Are you going to have the rest of your belongings shipped from Russia?" Viktor asked

"Нет, everything I need is in there." Yurio coldly responded, and a wisp of blond hair drifted in front of his face, peeking out from under the sweatshirt. The young boy quickly tucked it away. In his suitcase were clothing, his skates, a few posters, and his medals. Whatever clothing didn't fit in the large bag, he wore. It felt like he was drowning in a sea of fabric and sweat, but Yurio didn't have much choice. "Is there going to be a giant welcome party at the inn, Because I asked you and Yuuko especially not to throw one?"

"Нet. I just want to let you know, that if you ever want to talk about anything, just-" Viktor started before Yurio punched him in the face.

"I DIDN'T COME TO JAPAN TO TALK ABOUT FEELINGS AND MUSHY GUSHY SHIT!" Yurio screamed.

"I apologize. I forgot how you don't like to talk about things like that." Viktor apologized, rubbing his cheek with his free hand. "Oh, one more thing. Don't you dare do anything like that Yuri."

"Why not?" Yurio mockingly questioned. "Is it because he's your precious husband?"

"Because he's pregnant," Viktor growls. He had never felt this angry before, Yurio better not dare hurt his child.

"Is that why you took me on as a skater because you had no better option?! Do you pity me or something?!?!" Yurio screamed.

"What do you want to eat?" Viktor suggested.

"Huh?"

"You're always grumpy when you get hungry. Or you're uncomfortable."

"Why do you think that?"

"We've been rink mates since you were 8 years old."

"Shut up! I just want to unpack." Yurio scowled. They walked for a minute in silence, but before long, Yurio's stomach growled. "I want food."

After a 20-minute train ride and a short walk, and a visit to a crepe stand, Yurio, and Viktor finally arrived at YU-Topia inn. Viktor had taken off his beanie and had offered to hold Yurio's sweatshirt, but Yurio refused. Even though wearing 4 layers of clothing had made him slowly lag behind Viktor, He just wanted to go inside and unpack, he didn't want a single soul to see him wearing a third of his wardrobe like he was some sort of peasant. He has spent nearly 10 years trying to kill that image of himself.

But as the two Russians walked under the archway, yurio saw a figure dash from the window, out of the corner of his eye, Yurio saw a figure putting up a poster with Russian lettering. At that moment, something inside him snapped. A red-hot feeling ignited right between his chest and his stomach. Vitor hand lied to him, Yuuko and lied to him. They had both promised him that nobody was going to make a big deal out of this and they lied. Yurio was so engulfed in rage that he didn't notice Yuuko dashing out the door. He didn't hear her try and tell him that he had she had tried her best to stop everyone from forming a last-minute greeting party in the lobby and she had tried to stop Minako from making the poster. He couldn't think of anything but how they had betrayed him, even though they really didn't. At that moment, yurio could think of nothing except that he needed to get away from the traitors he had thought of as nearly family. He needed to get away, anywhere that wasn't here.

And in that moment, he was thankful that he was sweating harder than he had ever sweat before because as he ran off, nobody would be able to tell that he was crying.


	5. Chapter 4

**Hello everyone!!! I'm sorry in advance, but this is an emotionally heavy chapter. Chapter 5 will be all funny and back to Yuri and should be up by the 4th of July I swear! please don't destroy me! *hides under rock* Thanks again for reading!**

plop

Plop

PLOP

SPLASH

Yurio to tossed the rocks into the ocean. After wandering around a bit, he ended up at the shore. He had finally broken down and took off the sweatshirt, and the top 3 layers of clothing, which left him in his practice outfit, black fingerless gloves, a tight fitting black t-shirt, and pants. He had bundled up the clothes and left them in a heap in the sand behind him. Wth no intention of going to the inn and no clue where else to go, he had just decided to take out his anger by throwing rocks. He had often done the same thing in St.Petersburg when he had no other outlet to express his rage.

Plop! How could Viktor and Yuuko lied to him!?

Splash! Why did he have to cross the globe to be able to skate?!

PLOP! Nothing about him had changed!

SPLASH! WHY DID ANYTHING HAVE TO CHANGE!?

"AAAAAAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGG!! Yuri screamed as he threw a large rock into the water. It felt good to yell. He was so busy throwing rocks and stones that he didn't notice Viktor walking up to him.

"That's quite a temper tantrum," Viktor remarked, smiling slightly. Yurio looked up, then back away. "I'm sorry, I had no idea they were going to do that, I mean it"

Yurio still didn't say a word, but just kept throwing rocks.

"Avoiding me huh? Wouldn't be the first time. Like when Makkachin ate your skate guards, remember that?" Viktor giggled. Yurio still didn't respond.

"You didn't talk to me for a week. But then we skipped practice and went to a hockey game, remember?" Viktor recalled.

Yurio threw the rock with even more force, silently hoping the wind would steer the rock of course and smash Viktor's face in.

"Yurio. I can't change how Yakov reacted, but I-" Viktor started before Yurio dug his foot into the ground and spun toward him.

"DO YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY I CAME OUT?!" Yurio screamed.

"Да, if you want to tell me," Viktor responded. Yurio sat down on the bundle of clothing, and Viktor sat on the sand next to him.

"After your wedding, Otabek had to catch an early flight. weren't ready to say goodbye, so we ended up in some cafe. The more we talked, we realized, that since competition season was over, we weren't going to see each other for months, so we...we..." Yurio paused, and took a deep breath." We kissed. It was nearly 1:00 in the morning, so I didn't think anyone was watching. But I was wrong. Someone, I have no idea who, took a picture and sent it to Yakov."

"Let me guess, he was irrationally angry?"

"It was like I had summoned the devil himself. He went ballistic. I swear I haven't been yelled at that bad since I lived with my mom." Yurio divulged, shuddering.

Before he was born, Yurio's father had deserted his mother, so she was forced to live with her father, Yurio's grandpa, in an extremely poor part of Moscow. She often worked long shifts, and was rarely around for yurio, although that was most likely for the best. She would openly blame him for her financial struggle, and more often than not, would take out her anger on the small boy. Just thinking about the abuse would make yurio want to massage his cheek as if it still burned from his mother's hand. The only way he had been able to get away was through skating. Yakov had discovered him when Yurio was at a public skate held for poor kids, and with help from his grandpa, was able to convince his mother to let your go to St.Petersburg.

"That bad? I'm sorry. If I had any Idea, I would-" Viktor started

"It's not your fault. I just didn't think coming out would change the way people treated me. I mean I've always felt this way, I've just put it into words." Yurio scowled.

"Then what do you want from me? I can't tell if I'm treating you in a way that makes you upset if you don't tell me what you want." Viktor asked.

"You've always acted as if I'm your little brother or something. Yurio admitted. Viktor smiled.

"Alright then, братик. Are you ready to go back?" Viktor offered. Yurio smirked.

"Да" the skater replied. Viktor took the bundle of clothing and the pair walked back to Yu-topia, ready to explore what the future may bring, together.


	6. Chapter 5

**Hello, everyone! I'm so so so so so so so so so so sorry that this took so long to get up, I have had some serious writer's block. The next chapter hopefully will be up in 2 weeks, but I start my summer job on Monday, and that will eat up a lot of my time. Thanks for reading!!!**

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Week 8, April 2017

 _Good morning, sleeping beauty." Viktor whispered in my ear. I groaned and turned over._

 _"What time is it?" I groggily responded. Sleeping was the only time when I didn't feel sick to my stomach._

 _"Time to wake up!" Viktor reiterated, giggling. Even though I'm so exhausted I feel like I'm covered in a layer of thick mud, I open one eye and see that it's still dark._

 _"No, it's still dark out."_

 _"That's because the curtains are closed, little piggy." Viktor giggled he gracefully sat up and waved his hand, causing a Sakura tree to grow. A slight breeze made the newly grown petals dance over to the window, and pull back the curtains, to show the Garden of Versailles. "I texted the Tornado from the Wizard of Oz, and it dropped us off here for a day of romance! First stop, bre-"_

"BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP." Viktor's phone shouted. His hand reached over, and his beautiful fingers fumbled to shut if off. The small glow from his cell phone caught his wedding/engagement ring, making it sparkle. Once, he had turned off the alarm, he leaned over and gave me a soft kiss.

"Sorry I woke you up, sleeping beauty." He whispered. "Early practice with Yurio this morning."

"You interrupted my dream," I mumbled back.

"What was it about?" Viktor coaxed.

"You were taking me to France." I blabbered back.

"I apologize, go back to sleep, I'll meet you there." Viktor smiled and walked out of the room. But as soon as I get comfortable again, a very common side effect of pregnancy carries out, and I need to get up anyway and use the bathroom.

Hello everyone, Yuri Nikiforov here! It has been a very interesting month here in Hasestu. On February 21st, I found out I was pregnant. It's still very early on, so to Viktor's utter despair, the only signs of our child's existence are me feeling nauseous 24/7, having terrible mood swings, and constantly needing to use the bathroom. Not to mention very vivid, strange dreams and intense mood swings. Victor is inspecting my stomach at least once a day, trying to find the bump. I don't think I've ever seen him so excited and giddy. Yurio however, was unable to appeal the decision made by the Russian Skating Association and has to skate for the JSF, which he is not happy about. Viktor said the best thing we can do for Yurio is to act like nothing's different, so that's what we've been doing. I hope he's holding up ok.

"Took you long enough to get out of the house." Mari snarked. Because I can't skate, I've been helping out at the inn. Mom has asked the two of us to go to Target and get some new dish soap us to get more dish soap."

"I'm sorry, I had some morning sickness." I apologized.

"You don't have to apologize every time," Mari replies. She shied, rolled her eyes, and as we walked she started to pull out a cigarette.

"MARI!!! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! RIGHT NOW?!" I shout, immediately sitting fifteen meters away.

"Oh sorry. I forgot I can't even enjoy a cigarette because of your fragile child." She sarcastically mumbled under her breath The second she finishes, I feel the tears well up in my eyes.

"Why would you say something like that?! I cry. "This has been really hard for me too ok? Do you have any idea how it feels to nearly constantly live in the bathroom? Or how hard it is to not be able to not be able to skate?!"

"Ok, ok! I get it!" Mari consoles. "I forgot you can't just skate away your troubles. Let's just go to the store and go home." And just like that, we silently walk to the store. Mari's brutal honesty and sarcasm never bothered me before, but I guess the Hormones are being really difficult. In a few minutes, I am able to calm myself down.

When we actually get to the store, Mari grabs my hand and looks me dead in the face. "Do. Not. Get. Distracted. We are hear to get dish soap and nothing else. Noting. Else. Got it?" She commands

I nod my head but wear a look of slight confusion. I haven't wandered off in a store since I was 8 years old, why does she think this would be a problem now? Mari lets go of me, and we step through the sliding glass doors, and I immediately see why she warned me. I haven't been to Target since the GPF, and as if they were trying to torture me, all of the sections have been re-shuffled. And of course, the baby section is right in front. All of the little onesies, blankets, binkies, cribs, and even the little bottles are cuter than I ever could have imagined. I need to go over there now, we don't have any baby stuff and it's all here. I don't have a choice, and as I start to take one step forward, Mari grabs my arm and hold me back, but my feet stay firmly planted on the ground.

"Oh god no! Yuri, your eyes are getting big and glazing over, WE ARE HEAR FOR DISH SOAP!" Mari shouts.

"Bbbuut-" I start, trying to inch my way over. Her grip is surprisingly tight

"NO!" She shirked.

"Weneedstuuu-" I chanted, taking a step toward the baby section.

"WHAT ABOUT VIKTOR?!?!" Mari screamed, with more desperation than I have ever heard her use. "Don't you think he wants to do the shopping too?"

And just like that, I snap out of my trance. I turn to her, and when she see's that I am back to myself, she breathes a sigh of relief. We turn and walk to the other side of the store, where the cleaning supplies are. I swear, I haven't gone into a trance-like that since the Rostelecom Cup, where I hugged everyone like I was some sort of Zombie. And Mari is right, Viktor definitely needs to be here when all of the baby stuff is picked out. Hopefully, that will happen soon.


	7. Chapter 6

**Hello everyone! So this chapter is out WAY earlier than I thought, but inspiration just struck! I do have a quick question though. I was going to switch from Yuri's perspective to Yurio's every 2 chapters, but I know my last Yuri chapter was rather short. Would you guys like me to do one more Yuri chapter before I go back to Yurio? Please let me know. Thanks so so so so so much for reading and being so supportive of my work!**

"Lets fill out this registry!" Viktor cheered, and I open my laptop. Viktor and I are sitting on our bed, leaning against the headboard, put shoulders touching, my right arm looped through his left. Viktor's so happy, I can feel him internally bouncing up and down. I turn my head and look at him, and he flashes back an adorable heart-shaped smile, which causes me to smile even more.

"What site do you want to use?" I ask.

"I don't know. How exactly is this supposed to work again?"

"Well, we go to a website, and basically make a wish list of all the things we need for the Baby. Then we either get everything shipped here or pick it up from the store." I explain, but hastily add, "Or we could just make a normal list on a computer document and add links from multiple sites, whatever you want."

"The second option sound better."

"Ok, cool." I quickly pull up a document on one tab, make it fill half the screen, then open another window and have that fill the other half of the screen. I also pull out my phone and open up a check list I found of essential baby items.

"Wow! You young people are good with the computers!" Viktor joked. I smirk at him.

"Your only 28 Viktor."

"I know." He winks.

"Seriously thought, where do you want to start? Target? Babies R Us? Walmart?"

"I don't care. You pick."

I head over to the Walmart website, but before I can even click search, Viktor shouts:

"Walmart?! You want our child's first clothing ever to be from Walmart?! Have you ever been in one of those stores? I lost a bet with Chris and went into one in America and-"

"Umm, ok." I stutter. "So then what store do you want?"

"Anything, I don't care."

"You clearly have an Opinion about this! Just pick something!" I exasperatingly shout.

"I apologize. I didn't mean to get you upset. I really just don't know." He apologized, and we go silent for a few minutes.

"Babies R Us?" I suggest

"That sounds wonderful. An entire store dedicated to little things." He exclaimed, trying not to be too loud.

"I know." I smile back. I searched the page and click on the link. As soon as it loads, Viktor and I squeal so loud I'm surprised the window behind us didn't break. The front page is covered in babies in strollers, and a dad flying his baby in a blue onesie with fine black hair through the air, and babies on play mats, and a baby in a purple onside, tu-tu, and a flower headband with cute curly pigtails and dark skin sitting in a field, trying to pop bubbles, and babies playing with stuffed animals, and a parent feeding a baby in yellow and green striped romper, and so much baby cutest I could nearly explode. Viktor squeezes my hand, and we look into each other's eyes.

"I'm so excited."

"Me too. Where you you wanna start? The checklist on my phone starts off with Nursery stuff." I start.

For the next few hours (with frequent bathroom breaks) we looked at things like cribs, (I had to convince Victor that we did NOT need a 700 dollar crib, even though lit looked like something out of a fairytale castle) Strollers, (This time Victor had to talk me out of a stroller that converted from newborn to infant to toddler, because since the baby would be born in the winter, then the stroller would get wrecked before we could justify the 150$ price tag.) and newborn clothing (which was a complete disaster, because I wanted to save us time and money by just getting simple onesies, and Viktor wanted to get out to-be newborn baby an entire fashion wardrobe. We decided to wait a few weeks and do clothing shopping in-person).

And when we decide to turn in for the night, we look at the clock on the laptop and laugh our heads off, because it's nearly midnight. We also both didn't notice that the laptop was at 2% battery. When we were looking at the stuff for our baby time seemed to stop, and everything seemed so surreal, as if something this amazing couldn't be happening to us? We had only (soberly) met a little over a year ago, and I know some people probably say that we're taking things too fast, but when Viktor and I are together, it feels as if we have grown up together.

After I put the laptop away to charge, and Viktor sets his alarm, we have one last kiss goodnight, and we lie under the covers, me lying on my side with one arm under my head and the other sitting near my stomach, while Viktor reaches out his right arm over my side, his hand hugging the baby, and just like that, we fall into a deep sleep.


	8. Chapter 7

Hello everyone!!! after a poll run on my Yuri On Ice Amino account, this chapter will focus on Yuri and the baby. It's rather short and sweet, with a splash of yurio thrown in towards the middle. Next chapter will be back to Yurio's perspective. Thanks for reading, bye!

 _Week 9, April 18th, 2017_

The early morning April sun slowly filters through the large window In Viktor and me's room, shines on the glass case that hangs on the wall full of Viktor's Medals, causing them to sparkle. All 30 of them, most gold, but a few silvers and 2 bronze, hung in chronological order of when he won them, brilliantly glitter, bouncing sunlight off of every surface, make the room so bright I don't need to turn on the light. One of the things the light hits is a full-size mirror, which I'm currently standing in front of. I'm scanning every millimeter of my abdomen, looking and searching, like I do every morning, for any sign of the baby. I know that they are inside me, but I'm nearly a quarter through this pregnancy, and there's only so long a person can throw up every morning before they want results that all the suffering isn't for nothing.

My phone buzzes, which cause my eyes glance away from the mirror and down to it. 7:49am. Oh cool, a text from Viktor.

Viktor: Are you awake yet?

Me: I got up about a half hour ago. 

Viktor: Good. I don't like accidentally waking you up in the morning. How are you doing? Yurio's more grumpy today than normal.

Me: That sounds fun. You're having him produce his programs right?

Viktor: _да_ , but It's not going well. He's never done this before, and that combined with everything that's been going on lately has made him into a little grouch. 

Me: I'd be worried if he wasn't

Viktor: And I as well. What are you doing?

Me: checking for a bump, but so far, no luck.

Viktor: Are you still wearing that t-shirt from when we did the registry last night?

Me: Yea?

Viktor: Well you're clearly not going to be able to spot 

anything in that loose of a shirt.

Me: Good Idea, I'll try something else.

So I dig through my drawer for my old practice shirt. And when I find it, just looking at the long-sleeve navy blue -shirt, with its thin white lines lining the sleeves, and It's swooshy logo, make me tear up, and after gripping the shirt in under silence for a minute, I began to sob like crazy. How could it have been 2 entire months since I have even stepped on the ice? Why do I have to give up one love for another, more powerful one? Will I ever practice a skating program again?!

No. I have to keep it together. I'm already 2 months in, only 7 more to go. Then I get to meet the _Agape_ love of my life, Viktor and I's beautiful child. Even though they've only been in existence for 9 weeks (starting today), I already know they are the most purely beautiful thing I will ever see. And I want to see them right now, today! So I pluck up the courage to put it on.

And put it on I do, and I go and stand in front of the mirror, my body facing sideways. I pull my shirt back to make it as tight as possible. I suck in, so my lack of a 6-pack doesn't get confused with the baby.

After scanning and searching and seeking and scouring for what seemed like 300 seconds, I was ready to give up and try again tomorrow, when a small beam of sun drifted through the window, and caught on my ring, Making it sparkle more than all of Viktor's medals. Once I snap my eyes back to the mirror, I nearly cry again, but this time of pure joy.

As small as it was, for the first time in 9 whole weeks I could see what I was throwing up every day for. What I was feeling nauseous 24/7 for. What I have given up my passion for.

I could see the small, undeniable bump that held my child.


	9. Chapter 8

DISCLAIMER: I have some chunks of this chapter in Japanese (straight from Google translate. I Know google translate sinks, and I hate it too, but I don't know good enough Japanese to be able to do the Japanese want to do in the chapter without it.) The only parts that are in English are the parts Yurio can understand because he is struggling to learn Japanese. So when you soo large chunks of Japanese and freak out because you have no idea what they mean, that's ok! Neither does yurio. I also won't be putting in these notes when I might be posting my next chapter because with my writing process, it's very sporadic and I don't want to rush myself. Thank you so much for reading see you later!

"Hello, Yurio!" Viktor smiled as he skipped into the ice rink. Yurio rolled his eyes and just kept skating. "Make any progress in the last 5 minutes while I was out talking to Yuri?"

"OF COURSE NOT!!" Yurio screamed. Viktor put his hand up to his chin and stroked it like he was thinking of an idea. Oh crap. Yurio thought. Not one of Viktor's wild field trips! While training for the Hot Springs On ice!, Yurio had come to associate that look with Viktor forcing him to go to all of these mind-numbing boring places, like temples and waterfalls. It had been a while since the look had come out, but yurio was already mentally planning his escape route when Viktor finally opened his mouth.

"To the arcade!"

"huh?

The arcade was loud, colorful, yet relatively empty, after all, it was Tuesday morning smack dab in the middle of the school year. While this was more interesting than any of the mind-numbingly boring places Viktor had brought him when they were working on On love: Agape, it pissed Yurio off that he would have to stay very close to Viktor. The reason for this being despite his best efforts, Yurio stunk at Japanese.

"You are going to look around at and play some of the games, and you will pick one or two to inspire your programs. Here is some money."

"This is stupid," Yurio muttered.

"I know it's stupid, but it works. Even if something in here jogs a memory, like that time in the waterfall, we can work with that. But before I set you free, we are going to go to one game in particular!"

Viktor grabbed Yuri's hand and ran him over to the Whack A Mole game. It was red, and it had 5 holes on the lower, flatter section. The electronic board said: モグラ退治, and showed cartoon moles running around, and snapping away when a mallet crashed into the scene, hitting one, who suppressing wasn't dead, just dizzy. Then a cartoon demonstration showed plastic moles(wearing helmets for some odd reason) popping out of the holes, and a mallet (which was suspended by nothing) whacked the moles.

Viktor put some money in the machine, took the mallet off of the side, and handed it to Yurio, whose eyes lit up.

"I trust you know what to do?" Viktor challenged a slightly excited smile across his face.

"Да" Yurio replied, as the game started up. He felt this strange sensation, a warm, happy feeling he couldn't quite place. In an instant, however, he remembered he hadn't felt this way since Viktor and Yuri's wedding when he had seen Otabek. Was this excitement?

As the first mole rose out of his little hole, Yurio swung the hammer hard on the little plastic rodent's head. The ring around the whole lit up, and something happened on the board, but Yuri didn't notice. Even just smashing one little plastic shape with a large piece of fluff encased in a leather casing, on the end of a stick, felt more freeing than he had felt in a long time.

As the second mole rose up, Yuri's thoughts twisted back to Otabek. He hadn't contacted Yurio since that night in the café, dispute Yuri's multiple attempts. He was still skating, and under Kazakhstan, and Yurio imaged that Otabek must be going through the same hell he was, but all the same, why couldn't he TELL him that?! Yurio whacked the mole with about 50 times the force that he had hit the last one. He had given up skating for his country for Otabek, and Otabek hadn't even answered him.

Third mole. Why did he even have to leave Russia anyway?! He was Russian, he had always been Russian, and would always be Russian, so why did he have to skate for Japan?! This mole was hit so hard, the game nearly shook.

Fourth and fifth mole. Yakov, that's why. The man who had rescued Yurio from his home in Moscow and had acted like a father to him for all of those years was the same asshole who had tried to destroy Yuri's skating career, all based on one thing that didn't even matter. This time when the moles were smacked in rapid succession, the game did shake. Yurio also silently hoped he was working up a sweat because he could feel burning tears on anger welling up in his eyes.

Sixth mole. Burning tears made Yurio think of his mother, who had often caused them to fall. Was she the reason he needed to go to an arcade and hit plastic moles with a soft mallet? Did being at the brunt of her anger somehow tell him that violence was the correct way to deal with your own problems?

Seventh mole and eighth mole. And Grandpa, why didn't he do anything to stop her? The Tears he had been holding back finally started to roll when he thought of his grandfather. Did he just not know? After all, they did work exactly opposite shifts so someone would always be at home with him. And why hadn't Grandpa made any effort to contact him? Did he still support Yurio? Did he have any Idea what was happening to his grandson? He had cried, in public, twice in the last 2 months, he clearly wasn't ok, but he couldn't call Grandpa himself. He would need Grandpa to call him, the last thing Yurio needed was to sound desperate.

ninth, tenth, and eleventh mole. What if the reason Grandpa hadn't called him was that he physically couldn't? Just calls from St.petersburg to Moscow were rather expensive, so calls from Moscow to Japan would probably be astronomical if he could even find a phone that had international service. Ever since Yurio had been skating professionally, he had sent most of his money back to his mother and Grandpa, trying to help them out. It had helped, but Yuriko's mother had racked up so much debt from before Yurio was born, by trying to become a singer, that most of the money Yurio was able to send them didn't help out their daily lives.

Twelfth, 13th and 14th moles. Yurio would have to do it himself. Once he got his first paycheck, he would call his grandfather. He needed to know, he would have to give in to defeat. Defeat. Deafaye. THAT'S IT!!!! At least One of his programs would have to deal with defeat!

最終ラウンド, the game changed. 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th, 20th.

It was perfect. It was something that no one would ever expect him to do, which would make Viktor happy, and there was so much he could do. Maybe his short program could be about him giving into defeat, while the free program could be him rising up and putting defeat back in its place because he was NOT going to let all of this udder insanity stop him from Skating. Ever.

Yurio snapped out of his mole-whacking daze, wiped his eyes, and smiled. The screen said: 1025ポイント,高得点! Excellent work!, then he turned around to Viktor, who was laughing so hard he was bent over and crying.

"What's so funny?"

"You broke the mallet!" Victor laughed. Yurio checked, and out of the black leather, a seam was split, allowing bits of white fluff to run ragged. Yurio quickly shoved the mallet back in its hanging spot, and speeded away, feeling much better about the whole situation, but still not wanting to be known as the boy who broke the モグラ退治 machine.


	10. Chapter 9

Yurio and Viktor stayed in the arcade for hours after the 'glorious Whack-a-mole game of 2017' as Yurio called it (or 'The Whack-a-mole game when Yurio broke the mallet and I nearly died laughing' as Viktor named it), just goofing around, having fun. Yuri couldn't remember the last time he had done something just for the sake of having fun and made a mental note to do it more often. It was also the first time Viktor had ever seen Yurio genuinely relaxed, smile for hours on end, or even act like a normal teenager.

Later that night, Yurio's phone buzzed, and he picked it up.

Yukko: Hey Yuri! I just put the girls down to bed, how's the music hunt going?

Yuuko: And if Viktor asks, I'm not helping you. He's really intent on having you do this all on your own for some reason.

Yurio: I won't. And it's been great, ever since you sent me the link to that site. I found the free program music

Yuuko: Now presenting The Magic !

Yuuko: Type in the mood and or tone, and you will get a list of songs to go along!

Yuuko: Built for creative writing students, used by world famous figure skaters!

Yuuko: Now let's talk to someone who uses the site, YURI PLESESKI!!!

Yurio: Oh no! The infomercial queen has caught up with me!

Yuuko: Lol! I swear you are never this silly in person

Yurio: I feel like I can tell you anything.

Yuuko: Dawwww, Yurio! Thank you so much!

Yurio: Do you want to know what my free program song is now?

Yuuko: HOW DID I MISS YOU TEXTING ME THAT! Yuuko: What is it?

Yurio: Grenade, by Bruno Mars. I know I've heard it play on the radio at ice castle before

Yuuko: You noticed? I actually made the playlist that it runs on.

Yuuko: I'm so excited for you!!! That song is perfect for what you want to do!

Yurio: I know right!

Yuuko: Especially the last verse. Because even though the RSA has treated you so poorly, you would still go back in a heartbeat.

Yuuko: Sorry I'm not trying to offend you

Yurio: It's ok because it's absolutely true. The only problem is that it's 3:42 and the program have to be at least 4 minutes long.

Yuuko: Oh we can definitely fix that!;) Maybe we could add sound effects, or slightly slow it down.

Yurio: Whatever you say

Yuuko: Yuri Plesieskti just because I believe Viktor is taking it a league to far with this Don't-help-yuio thing, that doesn't mean I'm going to add to the song for you.

Yurio: how did you know I was hinting at that?

Yuuko: When it comes to her kids Nothing gets past Mommy!

Yuuko: Oh no I'm so sorry I didn't mean to offend you by calling you my son I'm pretty sure you don't have that good of a relationship with your mom, after all, you never mention her and please forgive me I'm so sorry

Yurio: Yuuko, it's fine

Yuuko: Really? I thought that would make you uncomfortable.

Yurio: Yuuko, you've done more for me than my mother ever did

Yuuko: Are you serious? I've barely done anything.

Yurio: You've never called me a waste of space

Yuuko: Wait, your Mom actually said that to you?!

Yurio: At least once a day

Yuuko: No wonder you don't talk about her.

Yurio: That's not all.

Yuuko: What do you mean?

Yurio: I'm just going to say this really fast before I have time to think about it.

Yuuko: Yurio, do you want me to come over here, orb have me go over there because you are clearly uncomfortable and I can tell this conversation is way too serious to do via text

Yurio: this is how I feel comfortable!

Yuuko: ok, if it works for you

Yurio: My mother never liked me very much. According to her, she was on her way to stardom when I came and made her lose all her money. If I was ever out of her sight, she assumed that I was getting into trouble and would punish me, but if I followed her around, she would still punish me saying that I needed to "grow the fuck up and be a man". And Of course, the only punishment she used was slapping me across the face.

Yuuko: I don't know what to say. How could anyone say that to a kid? You were still pretty young when you moved out, right?

Yurio: да, I was 8 when I left. And even now, she's the only thing I'm scared of.

Yuuko: I AM COMING OVER THERE IS NO WAY I AM LETTING YOU JUST SIT THERE!

Yurio: Please don't! I don't want your pity!

Yuuko: Oh my gosh I am so sorry I yelled!

Yurio: It's ok, I know you're not mad at me.

Yuuko: I'm so sorry. I' literally crying, how could anyone verbally hurt you like that?! What about you Grandpa, why didn't he stop her?!

Yurio: They worked exact opposite shifts, so he literally wasn't home. She always said never to tell, and I feared what would happen if I disobeyed.

Yuuko: What can I do?

Yurio: Nothing, it's impossible to change the past.

Yuuko: I'm sorry for confusing you, I meant what can I do for you going forward.

Yurio: Keep doing what you've been doing.

Yuuko: Which is?

Yurio: Acting like you're the Mom I never got.

Yuuko: I'd love nothing more, Yurochka

Yurio: Thank you so much Yuuko. For listening

Yuuko: you're welcome. If you ever need anything, feel free to ask me.


	11. Chapter 9 and One Half

**Hello, everyone! I'm really sorry for all the emotionally heavy Yurio chapters! So I decided to a bit of a filler chapter to jump the gap between Yurio and Yuro's perspectives that would include all 4 of my current Agape relationships(Yurio and Yuuko, Viktor and Yurio, Yuri and the baby, and Viktor and the baby) Thanks for reading bye!**

 _After telling Yuuko about the horror he went through with his biological mother and knowing she also felt a Mom-son connection between the two of them, made him feel like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders._

 _So for the next week, Yurio took all of the terrible images of his biological mother And replaced them with pictures of Yuuko. Whenever he would see her, he would mentally call her Okaasan, which meant Mom in Japanese. He couldn't explain, but somehow it felt more correct to call Yuuko than then Mom, even though they meant the exact same thing. But he even said the word Okaasan out loud a few times, only very softly, and when he couldn't think anyone could hear him. It was the only Japanese word that seemed to feel natural on his tongue._

 _The week after, when Yuri was 10 weeks pregnant, when it was just Yurio and Yuuko in the rink, he called her Okaasan for the first time. She, of course, teared up, After all, she knew could only imagine the terrible connotation her son must have with those kinds of words. But against all odds, he was healing, and she got to help him. Ever since she had first seen him, she knew that there was something special about Yurio, that he was going to play some significant role in her life. They only referred to each other as Okaasan and Yurochka in private for that one week._

 _The next week, Yurio felt comfortable enough to finally call Yuuko Okaasan in front of other people. The first time was as Viktor and Yurio were walking into Ice castle for practice, and Yurio greeted Yuuko with a "Hey Okaasan.", to which she responded "Hi Yurochka!". In Yurio's eyes, it wasn't anything sappy or complex, just natural. Viktor didn't really react much beyond by raising his eyebrow in a questionable manner, and when Yurio gave him a death glare, didn't comment further. When Viktor told now 11 weeks pregnant Yuri about the encounter, he responded with "It makes sense, I mean they have gotten pretty close. Is there a problem?" And Viktor replied back "No problem, just a little sudden."_

 _"I'm just glad he's finally happy. Ever since that day at the arcade he's loosened up a lot" Yuri stated, yawning._

 _"You need to get to bed, little piggy. We have a big day tomorrow."_

 _"I know. Going to sleep right now." Yuri giggled, and lied down on their bed. Viktor followed suit, and the couple easily went to sleep, knowing that now they weren't the only ones who were with a new child_


	12. Chapter 10

_9:00 am Week 12, May 9th, 2017_

"Good morning Yuri! Good morning Baby!" Viktor greeted, smiling from ear to ear. I opened my eyes a little, and see he's crouching next to the bed, at eye level to me. A soft rain taps against the large window behind the bed, and the light is on its lowest setting.

"Good morning Viktor."

"I can't wait for the appointment! It's 9:00 right now, so we have an hour to get you presentable and fed and then to the hospital!"

"I can see you're excited." I chuckle.

"Of course I'm excited! We have the first ultrasound today! Now get up, get dressed, and meet me in the dining room! I have a special breakfast for you!" He divulged, skipping out of the room.

I put on a long sleeve-blue striped t-shirt and jeans. I've been wearing more form-fitting shirts lately, to show off my bump. I never had the confidence to wear those kinds of shirts before, in fact, I've felt somehow more confident in my decisions since I became pregnant. Ever since the baby has been inside me, they have brought out sides to people I've never seen before. I don't think Viktor's ever been this giddy, and while I don't think Yuri's improved overall mood isn't directly caused by the baby, the nurturing environment their existence has caused is one that is helping him flourish.

After I finished getting ready, (with NO morning sickness!!! Thank you for the second trimester!) I went into the dining room, rather excited for what Viktor's "Special Breakfast" would be. Not many people know this, but Viktor rather enjoys cooking, especially Russian foods like Blini and Knish. But to my delight, his surprise isn't something home0 cooed, but strawberry pop tarts with peanut butter spread on top, and peppermint hard candy crushed up and sprinkled on top, with a side of cinnamon apple sauce for dipping. For whatever reason, I've been craving really sweet foods, and this was the combination that seemed to pop into my head the most. Not that I was supposed to have it often because it contained literally all of the sugar I was supposed to have in my entire day.

But what my new found favorite food of all time is those American styles Peppermint Hard candies. There just perfect. They aren't too big, you don't chew them, so they last longer, yet the flavor still stays, not to mention they were the only thing that would settle my stomach. I've become so obsessed with them, I'm pretty sure at some point someone (probably Mari) is going to start bribing me to do stuff with them, and It will absolutely 100% work. I remember a few weeks ago, I overheard a conversation between Her and Viktor, swearing there must be cocaine in those things, otherwise he wouldn't be so obsessed with them. Viktor, of course, replied that there couldn't possibly be cocaine in them, after all, if there were, it wouldn't be sold in stores and such, so Mari had to explain that it was just a joke and to stop taking everything so seriously.

 _10:18 am, Hasetsu Maternity Clinic_

As we sat in the examination room, me on the elevated cushioned table, Viktor in a swivel chair by my side, waiting for the Ob/Gyn, the ever-mounting nerves that had been building up inside of me since the night before, suddenly skyrocketed. My entire body felt heavy, as I trapped in a gigantic container of mud, my chest became tight, my right hand instinctively held my stomach, my breathing starting to shallow. What if something was wrong with the baby? What if they weren't developing properly, what if I had accidentally done something that would hurt the baby?!

"What if the ultrasound hurts the baby? It's all sound waves, what if it hurts their ears?" I panicked, thinking of all the blog posts and medical journals and baby magazines I had read online

"The baby can hear from inside the womb?"

"Yeah, starting at 18 weeks but our baby is only 12 weeks so that should be ok but what if the lady in the lobby and what if we're having twins and the-" I fretted, my breathing becoming more rapid my vision starting-to blurtogerinonebigaxiousswirlofdoom and-

"Yuri." Viktor swiveled his chair around to face me, grabbing my hand in his and looked me straight in the eye. "Yuri, you need to calm down." He said in a soothing voice. "Everything will be fine. If it turns out you are carrying twins, then you are carrying twins. If ultrasounds hurt unborn babies, then nobody would use them. Everything will be alright."

"Thanks, Viktor," I answered, taking a deep breath.

"What made you think you're carrying twins?" He asked.

"A woman in the waiting room with twins of her own said it was impossible for my stomach to be this big if I wasn't having multiples."

Viktor closed his eyes, ran his hand through his bangs, and sighed deeply. "Takeshi was right. Unsolicited advice is the most dangerous part of pregnancy."

But before I could respond, Dr.Tsuchiya gave the courtesy knock and walked in, pushing the ultrasound machine in front of her. The Machine looked like a rolling desk, with rounded cube bottom, and a tube that connected the base to a keyboard. The keyboard had a multitude of different levers, and buttons and dials, along with a standard Japanese keyboard, that help both hiragana and katakana. Attached to the keyboard by a rubber cord was a wand-like contraption, with a blue tip, that I knew was the connection point that helped the machine do its magic. Further up the metal tube was 2 monitors, a smaller one facing the same way as the keyboard, and the other, which was much larger, faced the right, which would give a clear view of what the wand decided to Viktor and me. Once she had rolled the machine to its destination on the left side of the cushioned table, she pulled a cord that spring loaded out of the base and plugged on the machine, causing it to come to life.

Dr.Tsuchiya herself rather tall and lanky, and her stick-straight bluish-black hair was cut to frame her diamond shaped face. Underneath her long white hospital robe, she wore pink scrubs decorated with pictures of daisies, and butterfly barrettes to keep her hair from falling in her face. Dr.Tsuchiya was my Ob/Gyn, personally recommended by Dr.Hamazaki. They said that out of all the Ob/Gyn's they knew, Dr.Tsuchiya was the best at dealing with anxiety. However, to me, she seemed more like an all-knowing Angel than a person, hand picked by God to deliver our baby.

"Good morning Nikiforovs! It is nice to see you again." She greeted, slightly bowing.

"Good morning Dr.Tsuchiya, It's nice to see you too."

"Thank you. Are you two ready to see your baby?"

"Дa, We're so excited!" Viktor chirped. I nodded my head and took another deep breath, so anxious and scared that my jaw felt wired shut.

"Great! Yuri, can you lie down for me, please? Thank you." She consulted, as I complied. I rolled up my shirt, so she could squirt the cold jelly on my belly. Viktor took out his phone and started recording. At that moment you could have cut the anticipation in the air with a knife. Dr.Tsuchiya took the wand and started to press on my stomach. Viktor and my eyes snapped to the large monitor, we were ready to see the first look of our child, and it was going to start in 3, 2, 1:

They were surrounded by a large dark spot, which was shaped like the heart smile on Victor's face. Their head was a perfect oval, and could almost see their small ears, and eyes, which were closed. their torso was a more elongated oval, but Their stomach was full. their arms and legs were growing out of the right spot. Their entire body gracefully moved around, as if they were dancing to a song only they could hear.

"Dr.Tsukiya, moved the wand around, checking every fraction of the baby, making sure they were healthy, and everything was in the right position

Viktor and I didn't speak, after all, the baby, our baby, was too beautiful for words. All we could do was stare at the screen. I couldn't feel how cold the gel was, or how hard Dr.Tsuchiya pushed with the wand or the tears of joy streaming down my cheek. All I could feel was my heart pounding, not out of fear, but out of pure love. I could have watched them for hours, I didn't want this moment to end.

"Everything looks great." She praised, also wearing a smile. "Do you want me to print out some pictures?'

Viktor and I both nodded our heads, unable to take our eyes off of our child. But unfortunately, She lifted the wand off of my stomach, and our baby disappeared from sight, destined to dance without an audience for what felt like a lifetime, but in reality was only 28 days.


	13. Chapter 11

As we walked home from the hospital, hand in hand, I felt as if I was walking on air. Everything looked normal, everything looked healthy, and the Baby looked absolutely beautiful. 

"I can't wait for the next ultrasound!!!" I proclaimed, seeing Viktor's beaming face

"Me too! It was so magical! And Dr.Tsuchiya said that they might be able to tell boy or girl next one!

"Vikor, why do you care about that so much? It's not we're going to treat them any different or have them wear certain things whether they are a boy or a girl."

"I know, but Russian surnames are very gender-specific."

"Really?"

"But you know that after all, you are learning Russian." Viktor passive aggressively said.

"Sorry, I've just been kinda busy and tired lately and when I have actually sat down and tried nothing seemed to stick. Извините. (I'm sorry)"

Viktor sighed. But then his look of understandable disappointment turned it a mischievous one. "Fine. But as the baby gets bigger, you will have wished you did." He taunted, a mischievous look in his eye. 

"Viiiikttoooor?" I ask, slightly insanely terrified.

"So what do you want to do with the rest of the day?" he abruptly asked, as f our previous conversation about Russian never happened.

"I'm not sure. Do you have any ideas?"

"Het. But it doesn't feel like it's time to go back yet.

"I know what you mean. Hey, maybe we could go to target or some sort of store like that and try round 2 of picking out baby clothes?"

"That sounds like a wonderful Idea." He winked.

The Baby clothing (which was in a different spot from the baby supplies for some odd reason) was right next to the lamp section, giving it a warm, nurturing feeling, on top of the normal bright lights of Target. Like most clothing stores I had been in, the section was completely separated from pinks and blues, girl and boy, which didn't make much sense. I mean, Why should one person have to wear different things than another, because of their gender? 

"Where do you want to start?" I ask Viktor, who still hasn't been able to stop smiling. 

"Well, what do we need?"

I pull my phone out of pocket and take out the list I have on this exact topic. Babies are really messy, so Yuuko suggested planning for 2 outfits a day, which for 1 week would mean 14 outfits. For nighttime, she said that just one a night would do, which would add up to 21 total. Both Viktor and I have a problem keeping track of our own socks, so the baby is probably going to need about a million. Then adding in the fact that the baby is going to be born in the beginning of winter, they're also going to need lots of hats, sweaters, and a winter coat, but because it's may, none of that is here right now. We were lucky enough as we were because there were clearance items still from winter. But then when you calculate that because we live in an inn, there is always some form of laundry going on at all waking hours, then we really only need half of the stuff, which comes out to-

"Yuri?"

"Sorry, I was calculating. We need about 7 day outfits, 3 or 4 nightclothes, and the largest pack of socks we can find. And size wise, it's all newborn. We can get more when they grow out of it."

"Alright! You go get the socks, I can get the day outfits."

"Viktor, we really should do this together. And besides, they don't need super fancy clothing. They are literally going to grow out of it in 3 months, at the most."

"Are you saying you don't trust me?"

"No, Viktor! I'm just saying this is very important, so maybe we could do the more important things together."

I also completely and utterly don't trust him not to pick out the fanciest, most expensive things in all of Target. If it was up to him, the baby would be wearing top-of-the-line designer clothing.

"Fine. But we're getting at least 2 outfits that aren't boring."

"That's a fair deal."

When we got home, Viktor immediately wanted to take the clothes we got out of the bags, but I put my foot down and said that it was 12:00, so it clearly was time for lunch. He, of course, complied, saying that until that very moment, he realized he had been so excited to for the ultrasound that he had completely forgotten to eat breakfast. I secretly thought he was crazy, although Viktor probably thought I was the crazy one after I put ketchup on top of my chicken curry and drowned the rice in maple syrup. 

When we had finished, Viktor bounced right up, and gracefully speeded to our room. I, however, took a second in the doorway, just to watch him. I love seeing him this excited. 

When I did join Viktor in our room, he already had the clothing all played out on our bed. We ended up getting 7 outfits, which were dispersed into a 3-pack I had picked, a 2-pack we had agreed on together, and Viktor's 2 'not-boring' outfits. For sleepwear, there was a rather convenient 6-pack of footie pajamas that were in rainbow colors. And we got the 10-pack of socks, both knowing we would be lucky to have any of them by the second week.

The first was out of a 2-pack that Viktor and I had decided on together. The long-sleeve shirt and matching pants were a bright cherry red but were covered in white polka dots, making the ensemble look like an inverse Japanese flag.

The second outfit was from an animal 3-pack I had picked. This long-sleeve onesie was a vibrant orange and had a koi fish on the front. The matching pants were white, which worried me a little, but they had brown and orange spots all over, so hopefully, the dirt will just fall into those convenient patches.

The third outfit was the second of the animal 3-pack. It was a rather simple, no-fuss long-sleeved pastel yellow onesie, with a picture of a duckling on the front. The matching fleece-lined pants were a light Grey, which matched the Duckling's eyes and Viktor's hair (Not that I said it out loud)

The fourth outfit was one of Victor's picks. It was a light green long-sleeve T-shirt, and blue and white striped overalls (witch thankful didn't unbuckle the way overalls normally do, but was just a shirt and pants made to LOOK like overalls). On the chest pocket, the overalls had a picture of an airplane.

The fifth outfit was Viktor's second pick. The top was a navy-blue jean t-shirt with long sleeves, and the second half was gathered, giving it the impression of a small dress. On the front left, was an embroidered chocolate-vanilla swirl soft-serve ice-cream cone, which obviously had a smiley face. The bottoms were white leggings and were covered in pictures of different kinds of smiling ice-creams, like Ice cream sandwiches, strawberry sundaes, and more of the soft-serve swirls seen on the top. 

The sixth outfit was the last of the collaborative 2-pack, It was again a long sleeve shirt with what was basically sweat pants, but instead of being red with white polka dots, it was a royal purple with Sakura pink stripes. The striped themselves were normal stripes, but wavy ones, like the ones you see on top of Crayola crayons.

The last outfit and the final of the 3-pack was a very light, creamy, pastel pink and the animal on the front of it was an adorable kitten. The pants were a bit less pastel pink, to match the inside of the kitten's ears. The very light color originally kept me from getting the pack (because I knew that it was going to get VERY dirty VERY fast) but unlike the other onesies in the set, this one came with a headband that had white cat ears on it, so I we had literally no choice. I can't wait to see Yuri's reaction.

After taking a large 'group shot' of the small outfits, and posting it on Instagram, we put them in the corner of the room, right where the crib was going to go. Neither of us wanted to put them in the closet. 

"Hey, boys! Minako, Yurio, and Nishikori's are here for dinner! Bring the pictures!!!" Mom shouted from the dining room. We looked at each other, smiled, grabbed a stack of ultrasound pictures (we had made about a million copies) and walked down to lobby, not wanting to keep our babies audience waiting.


	14. Chapter 12

Yurio and Viktor left Yu-topia inn at 5:45 the next morning and silently walked to Ice Castle. About half way there, Viktor asked Yurio:

"I never asked, but how did you and Yuuko get so close so quickly?"

"The first few days I was in Hasetsu, for whatever reason she wouldn't leave me alone. She always asked if I needed help or wanted to chat and shit mile that. So one day I let her time me going up and down the stairs, just so she would stop asking. Afterward, she invited back to her place for lunch, and I went, not because I was desperate for her company, but because I wasn't in the mood to deal with getting food at the inn." Yurio divulged, as they crossed the bridge, where Takumi seemed to constantly be fishing.

When Yurio had first started skating in Moscow, Yakov had pressured Yurio into learning English, even though Yurio said it was completely pointless. And while he remembered learning English being just had hard as learning Japanese, for whatever reason, English just seemed to stick in a way Japanese did not. Maybe it was the fact the Japanese had 2 MORE ALPHABETS THAN ANY NATURAL HUMAN BEING WOULD EVER USE IN THEIR RIGHT MIND. Yuri's parents didn't speak a word of English or Russian, which made communication rather tedious.(Viktor called it good practice) However In college, Yuuko had double-majored in child psychology English, so communication had never been an issue with her.

"Then she kept texting me while I was in Russia, and I thought she was just bored. I only texted back because I had nothing better to do. But right before Skate Canada, when I was looking at the time zone, I realized that she was texting me at 2:00 am Japan time, and she posted that picture on her Instagram." Yurio continued, as Ice Castle began to grow in the landscape.

Viktor knew the picture. It was a selfie of Yuuko, wearing Yuri's Angel's ears. She had posted it the day before Skate Canada, with the caption, "Идти Юрий! Go, Yuri! ゆりに行こう!"

"That was when I realized that she wasn't texting me just to pass the time, she was texting me because she genuinely wanted to, and cared about me. Once I figured it out, I started to open up more and more, until we got to where we now. The moment that finally leads to us calling each other Okaasan and Yurochka was the night after 'The glorious whack-a-mole game of 2017' when I told her about my biological mother."

"Good for you, I know those kinds of things are hard for you." Viktor happily chanted, as Yurio pulled open the door.

"Hey, Okaasan!" Yurio called as they walked in, getting her attention from behind the counter.

"Hey Yurochka, how are you? Did you write down the program on a piece of paper, for Viktor?" She greeted. Because Yuri's baby was going to be born in late November, Viktor wasn't going to be available as much for practice, especially later in the season. Viktor was also definitely going to miss the Grand Prix Final, and depending on where Yurio was assigned, some of the later qualifying events. To combat this, Yuuko had come on Yurio's secondary coach. During practice, She was still her sweet self, yet strict, which was something that Viktor just was not. It's not she was trying to say that Viktor's loose coaching style was bad, it definitely worked for Yurio, but Yurochka needed a strict 'Yes, that was good', or a 'No, do it again', instead of 'Well do you think it was good?". She also knew how to get Yurio to do things that would help him out in the long run, that he didn't see the need for in the short run, like writing the program down on paper instead of digitally. Hand-writing the program down would help Yurochka remember it better, and saying that it was for Viktor's sake would silence any compelling.

"Right here" Yurio replied, holding up a perfectly folded piece of white-lined paper.

"Great. I hope Viktor likes it." Okaasan smiled.

"He's just happy we have something solid to work off of." Yurio scoffed.

"And astounded you finally have a full program decided upon!" Viktor added

"Ha ha. Very funny Viktor" Yurio sarcastically shot, rolling his eyes.

"Let's see the program!" Viktor exclaimed as the two of them walked into the rink. Once Yurio had his skates on, he handed the piece of paper with his routine on it to Viktor, who instantly looked over every bit of it. "Why do you have certain song lyrics written next to the jumps?"

"Okaasan thought it would be a good idea to try and tie my routine into the music."

"Alright, if that what you think will work. Which part do you want to show me first?" Viktor inquired

"All of it." Yurio nonchalantly stated, as he handed Viktor the remote to the stereo and walked on to the ice. He skated to the center of the rink, and closed his eyes, thinking of what he was about to do.

Viktor pressed play, and like a flash, Yurio was in full performance mode.

4 minutes and 10 seconds later (with the help of Okaasan, Yurio had been able to slightly slow down the song, stretching it to meet the time limit), Yurio was an angry ball of sweat and frustration. To say that the performance has been shit was the understatement of the year, in his mind, it was the worst he had ever skated. To the untrained eye, however, it looks like a Grand Prix worthy performance, but Yurio knew he could do so much better.

"Play it again!" Yurio barked.

"Are you sure, that wasn't that b-" Viktor started before Yurio cut him off.

"JUST PLAY IT!"

Viktor complied, not wanting to derail Yurio's motivation. After he performed the piece again, Yurio felt that he had improved a little, but not enough for feedback, so he demanded that Viktor plays the song again. This went on for nearly two hours until Viktor threatened to literally drag Yurio of the ice, to take a nice, long break, not the quick 10-second water breaks he had taken in between routines.

"Are you ready to hear my feedback now?" Viktor asked.

"Дa." Yurio panted.

"From when you first showed me this morning until now, you have improved more than I thought possible in 2 hours. I think the reason that you are struggling so much is that you are trying to integrate the song into your routine, something you have never been good at. I also want to apologize." Viktor noted.

"Apologize?" Yurio inquired

"A more loose coaching style doesn't work for you. One day of a more strict practice with Yuuko has carved the way for you to make more progress in the last 24 hours than you have in the past 4 months. So for that, I would formally like to apologize. I still want you to produce your own short program, but I will help you more this time around." Viktor apologized.

"Took you long enough to figure out," Yurio grunted.

"I'll take that as an apology accepted. Now, for actual feedback. The choreography itself isn't bad, but you're trying too hard to connect to the music. With the Ice DAnce style you're going for, you need to blend effortlessly into the song, otherwise, you're never going to win anything. But fortunately for us, Minako's letting us go to her ballet studio tomorrow to show us the perfect game to combat that!" Viktor cheered, flashing a heart-shaped smile.

Yurio groaned. Seriously, more ballet?! That was the last thing he wanted to do! But as Okaasan pointed out as they texted that evening, Viktor was finally making actual decisions as a coach.


	15. Chapter 13

Hello, everyone! Something you probably don't know about me is that I am a HUGE Hamilton fan! My best friend is also into both Hamilton and YOI, so they helped write this chapter. I DO NOW OWN HAMILTON I JUST LOVE IT FOR THE SECOND TIME I DO NOT OWN HAMILTON! Thanks for reading!

Yurio stood outside Minako's dance studio, staring at the door, waiting for her class to end. This was the class, the one with the student that had done it. When he found that kid, Yurio swore h e was going to make them sorry, after all, they did this to him. The week before, Yurio had gone to Minako's studio to do some game that would in Viktor words, help him "be more in tune with the music". The game itself wasn't bad, and it did help a little, but what really stuck with him was the music. One of Minako's students had swapped the CD that she was going to use for Yurio with one that had this American Musical on it. Even though it only played the first few notes of the first song, Dun dun dun dun dun, the music had played in Yuri's head on repeat. Dun dun dun dun dun. Where he went. Getting ready, Dun dun dun dun dun. Walking to Ice Castle, dun dun dun dun dun. Even during practice,(which was really messing with his performance) dun dun dun dun dun. He figured if he could listen to the song again, maybe hearing the full version would finally banish these notes from his head, or at the least, give his brain something else to play. So that's why he was standing outside Minako's studio. he would find the kid who left the Cd, get the name of the song, then go back to his room at the Inn and listen to the song on YouTube.

"さて、それは、我々は完了です！ 来週皆さんに会いましょう！ エスコ、実際に練習してください、アイコ、もしあなたが私が去ってもそれを聴かなければならないなら、今度はあなたの音楽を忘れるなよ、私は君を傷つけるだろう!" Minako shouted, as her class grabbed their things and exited the door. The last one to leave was a boy with short black hair, wearing earbuds. Yurio knew that this was the one because he was humming the Song that was stuck in Yurio's head.

"Hey! Who are you?" Yukio shouted.

"Fukuoka Aiko, nice to meet you. Who are you?" The boy coolly responded, still wrapped up in his music.

"I'm Yuri Plisetsky, and you left that CD in Minako's CD player!!! And that stupid song had been playing in my head for a week!" Yurio hollered.

"Why are you upset? Hamilton's the best musical ever!"

"So that's what it's called," Yurio muttered to himself, then turned to leave.

"Wait, you haven't listened to the whole song?" Aiko shouted after him.

"Your teacher turned it off after the first few notes," Yurio explained. Aiko let put a heavy sigh.

"Minko-sensi hates Hamilton, she says it's not 'Ballet appropriate'. I left the CD in her CD player, hoping maybe she would just listen to it on repeat until she liked it. I can't deal with being the only Hamilton fan in this entire stupid town. Oh hey, wanna listen to the rest of the song? Yuri, do not throw away your shot." Aiko divulged.

"Yes." Yurio recooked. Aiko walked over to Yurio and handed him one of the ear buds. Yurio put it in, and Aiko started up the Music.

"Dun dun dun dun dun do do do do" The music started. This was it, Yurio thought. Finally, this stupid song will be out of my head. "How does a Bastard, Orphan, Son of a Hore and a Scotsman, dropped i. The middle of a forgotten-"

3 minutes and 45 seconds later, there was something more inside Yurio. Aiko could sense this as well, and respond:

"I have to go, or my Mom's going to worry, but I have a couple of suggestions. Meet me here same time, same place, next week and we will discuss. Do not throw away your shot."

"I will," Yurio responded, and the two boys walked away.

One week later, Yurio hadn't just listened to the entire soundtrack, he had listened to it about 15 times and was on the irreversible track of becoming a full-fledged fanboy.

He would quietly hum the songs to himself, casually slip song lyrics into everyday conversation, and even got a Tumblr account. Not left any trace anywhere that alexanderhamilton1301 was him, or posted much. He just listened to a lot of covers. This inspired him to try rapping Hamilton's part of his current favorite song, 10 Duel Commandments, privately, in his room. However, he had his headphones on and was just loud enough for someone who was standing directly outside the door to hear.

Now Viktor had noticed Yuri's change in overall behavior and was trying to investigate. He heard Yurio attempting to rap, and quickly whipped out his phone and recorded Yurio rapping. After Yurio stopped, Viktor quietly creeps back into the room he shared with Yuri and the Baby and typed the lyrics Yurio had rapped into google. He too, however, listened to the entire soundtrack, not because he wanted to be into it, but so he could know what Yurio was talking/rapping about. And of course, to 'innocently' use it against him.

The next day, when Yurio came down to breakfast, Viktor had his laptop in open to a video. On the back, was a piece of paper with the lyrics to 'We Know'

"What is this?" Yurio said, slightly worried.

"This sounds an awful lot like you." Victor teased, wearing a mischievous smirk, and played the Video of Yuria rapping.

"You don't even know what you're asking me to confess" Yurio stated, turning around, and leaving the dining room

"We both know what we know," Viktor shouted after him.

As he stormed out of Dining room, all Yurio could think of was how to get Victor to NOT to use this newfound love against him. Although Yurio knew it was only a matter of time, after all, he had teased Viktor more times than he could count, and Viktor finally had dirt on his back. Yurio walked to his room, grabbed his skating bag, and headed over to Ice castles. Okaasan would know what to do about this.

But as he left You-Topia Inn, and walked toward the rink, Yurio realized that Viktor was following him and that it was 7:00 am, in middle of rush hour. The streets were packed with people rushing to their jobs, which made it the perfect place for Viktor to embarrass Yurio. When stopped at a red cross light, he turned to Viktor and angrily whispered:

"If you do anything, I swear to god I will murder you in your sleep." And when Yurio scowled at him, Viktor got a perfect Idea. Yurio's infuriated scowl was often referred to has is 'punk smile'

"OOOOO, YURIO, WHEN YOU SMILE, I AM UNDONE, MY SON. LOOK AT MY SON! PRIDE IS NOT THE WORD I'M LOOKING FOR, THERE IS SO MUCH MORE INSIDE ME NOW!" Viktor very loudly sang, which made everyone stare at the two brothers.

And in that very moment, the sheer embarrassment that fell upon Yurio fueled his rage, causing him to scream, "HOW DARE YOU INSULT LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA WITH YOU TERRIBLE SINGING VOICE!"

"At least it's not as bad as your rapping!" Viktor winked, and with that, Yurio got ready to punch Viktor square in the face, but lucky for Viktor, Yuuko's house was right across the street, and she was able to get out, speed over, and stop her son, via. physical dragging him away and tug her front door. When they got inside her living room, she started Yurio straight in the face and chanted:

"This war is hard enough without any fighting, you solve nothing, you aguacate our allies!"

"AAARRARAUUG!!!" Yuri screamed, as Viktor causally walked in. "YOU HAD A PART IN THIS DIDN'T YOU!!!"

Viktor nodded. "I didn't say anything that wasn't true."

"THAT'S IT!!! WEEHAWKEN! DAWN! GUNS! DRAWN!" He cried, before storming out of the rink, to get away from his crazy family. Once his back was turned though, Yuuko picked up her cup of coffee that was on the table, handed Viktor another, and the clinked mugs.

In all seriousness, Yurio didn't actually plan to duel Viktor, especially not that early in the morning. But he wasn't entirely sure that Viktor got the reference, or could actually get up in the middle of the night. But to be on the safe side, that night, yurio slept in his clothes, with a water gun on his nightstand, and set an alarm on his phone for 3 in the morning. When the alarm went off, Yurio looked out the window and wasn't surprised to see Viktor, outside, with a water gun of his own. Yurip groaned, and got out of bed, grabbed his gun, and went outside.

"I must say, that is an impressive impersonation of a zombie." Viktor giggled, as Yurip stepped outside.

"What the hell is your problem Viktor?" Yuio mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

"Yurio, can we agree this is dumb and immature?"

"Sure, but you have to answer for your word."

"We both know this is absurd"

"Hold on how many people suffered because you insulted Lin-Manuel Miranda in the street?

"Ok, so we're doing this."

The two Russians got into position and raised their arms at each other. Yurio aimed his pistol in the air after all that's what Alexander said to do. He contemplated his life choices that had led him to do a 1700's American style gun duel at two in the morning with water guns and came to the conclusion that Lin and the rest of the Fandom would be proud. The both counted "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9-"

"Viktor, come back to sleep" A voice command. Viktor and Yurio turned their heads, to see a rather sleepy Yuri in the doorway. "It's still dark outside." Viktor and Yurio looked at each other, then at Yuri, then at their water guns, realized they had both taken this a little too far, silently forgave each other, went back inside, and never spoke a word of the duel again.


	16. Chapter 14

Hello, everyone! So just a quick Disclaimer, I am going to have a 'sex-reveal' of Yuri and Viktor's baby in this chapter. I personally don't agree with making a big deal out of that kind of thing, after all, gender is just a construct and it doesn't really matter if you're a girl, boy, or nonbinary. But I still decided to put one in, because I feel like it would be more true to the charters to have it in. I hope that with chapter 11 I was able to properly express that no matter whether Viktor and Yuri have a girl or a boy, or the child ends up being trans or nonbinary, that they will still love and treat them the exact same way, and **_when it comes down to it,_**

 ** _they don't give a shit about their child's gender._** *steps off soap box and hides in corner* Thanks again for reading!!!

 _11:19 am, Week 18, June 6th, 2017_

 _Hasetsu Maternity Clinic_

"Yuri, what's wrong?" Viktor asked me. We were in the same positions we were 28 days ago, me on the elevated cushioned table, and vikor in a swivel chair. Last night, we had both been nearly jumping for joy at the prospect of seeing our baby again, but ever since this morning, I've had this gut feeling something is terribly wrong, even though Viktor has told me a million times everything is probably fine.

"I'm really nervous, even though you say that everything's going to be fine, and it probably is, what worries me the most is that This doesn't feel Anxiety based. Like, last time I was having the beginnings of an anxiety attack, but this time, I can't really put it into words, but I feel the same amount of nerves, but without the anxiety." I admit.

"Yuri, if you're really concerned, then today is the best day to be so, after all, ultrasounds are used to pick up things like that." Viktor confronted. I swear I don't know what I did in my life to deserve someone as amazing as him.

"Большое спасибо(thank you very much)"

Just then, Dr.Tsuchiya knocked, and walked in, rolling the ultrasound machine behind her.

"How are you guys doing?" She greeted.

"Ok," I respond back. "Viktor is nearly jumping off the walls he's so excited."

Dr.Tsuchiya giggled and plugged the machine in. "Just before I start, do you two want to know male or female? She inquired.

Viktor looked at me, and we both nodded in unison. "Don't feel the need to go looking for it though. If you don't see it that's ok too," I added

"Don't worry, if they are half as active as last time, then we will get definitely be able to tell. Yuri, I trust you know what to do now?"

I nod my head very fast, a large smile spreading across my face. Viktor is already recording on his phone when I lie down, and as Dr.Tsuchiya squirts the jelly on me.

"Last time, we were mainly focusing on the position of the baby, making sure everything was growing where it was supposed to. Today, we are going to be focusing not just on that, but also placement of the placenta, and whether they are male or female." Dr.tsuchiya explains, but neither of us is really listening, our eyes are glued to the screen, waiting for Dr.Tsuchiya to use the wand, so we could see our child.

Finally, after what seemed like years, she took the wand and pressed down, and presto! The baby was on the screen.

As before, they were pure perfection. They had obviously grown, but this time, weren't nearly as active. In Fact, they were just lying down, only moving a little bit.

"Is everything ok?" I terrifyingly asked.

"Yes, yes. From what I can tell, they're just sleeping. What's important is that they're still breathing, and you can see that. Look, their chest is moving up and down."

Viktor and I breathe a sigh of relief. Even though they're asleep, I still want to watch them for all eternity, I just want to see their chest rise and fall, I don't just want to, I need to. I don't have a choice, I need to make sure that they are alright. Dr.tsuicha moved the wand, to go explore the area around the baby. But something was different about her this time, especially when she moved the wand further and further up my stomach. Her usually cheerful smile was slowly getting replaced by a much more serious look, and unlike last time, the silence wasn't magical, but Stoney. She kept moving the wand all around my stomach, sometimes, even cutting the baby completely out of the picture. She's looking for something. Then, when the wand is rather low down on my stomach, she just tops. On the screen the bottom half of the baby, and this large ovular thing, I'm not entirely sure what it is. but by the stony expression on her face, I can tell this is really, really, really bad.

I can't find the courage to ask her, but thankfully Viktor does. "What is wrong?"

Dr.Tsuchiya takes deep breath in, then explains. "There is no way I can put this without causing an excess amount of worry, so I'm going to shoot it straight. Yuri, you have placenta previa. In a normal pregnancy, the placenta is at the top of the uterus, but in some cases, like yours, the placenta lies low, so low that it covers the cervical opening. Most cases usually are corrected by the time labor hits, but to be safe, putting you on bed rest. Do you know what that is?"

Everything starts to spin. Placenta previa?! I had read about it, and if it's still present by the time labor hits, then it can cause excessive bleeding and you have no choice than to have a c-section. Not that the prospect of a surgery phased me, If it means keeping the baby safe, I would do literally anything. I just want them to be ok. I somehow find the courage to nod my head. I turn to look at Viktor, and nothing could have prepared me for what I saw.

He rather closely resembled a marble statue, he was paler than I had ever seen him before and seemed to be frozen in time, with a look of pure worry engraved on his face. My happy Viktor, my giddy, positive, energy Viktor was turning into pale, silent, terrified, me.

"Bed rest is when I basically just lie down, completely still, 24/7, and get up only when absolutely necessary," I explain, not exactly sure how I mustered the courage to speak.

"Here at Hasetsu maternity clinic are lucky enough to have 3 top-of-the line 'bed-rest cabs'. They have a stretcher inside, and trained professionals that drive the "cabs" will take it as far into your dwelling place as possible, so it's safer to go to and from the clinic. I'm going to send you home in one, and every time you come here, I will call for one for you." Dr.tsuchiya directed.

'That's actually insanely cool." I comment.

Dr. Tsuchiya moved the wand up, so we could get a clear view of our sleeping beauty. "I'm guessing you two want pictures again?" we nod. She presses a button on the side of the machine, and just like magic, 3 copies of the magical picture on the screen side out of the ultrasound machine. With one hand still holding the wand to my stomach, she grabbed the portraits. She looked at the portraits, then rather closely on the screen, using down a little hard with the wand, and smiled. "I'm excited to say, I get to end this appointment on a good note for you two!"

"Really? What?!" Viktor exclaimed, immediately snapping out of his petrified state and tuning back into the Viktor I know and love.

"It's a girl!"


	17. Chapter 15

Hello, everyone! For this chapter, I decided to introduce a new perspective, Viktor! I normally do first person perspective for my OC's or characters that I feel are similar in prosody to me (If I'm in a new situation, it's almost freaky how much I resemble Yuri), So I apologize in advance if you think I completely screwed up Viktor's POV. Thanks for reading, see you next chapter!

"Yuri, are you alright?" I asked.It was nearly 11 pm (23:00), and he still hadn't fallen asleep.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He assured, sounding a little sad.

"Did you take a lot of naps today? Is that why you are asleep?" I question.

"No.I'm perfectly fine, Go back to sleep. I don't want to inconvenience you." he maintained.

"Oh, that is, you want something! What is it? I'll go grab it for you." I announce, getting out of bed.

"Viktor, It's fine, I can wait until tomorrow." he objected

"No, I want to help. It killed me to be at Ice Castle when the two of you here just lying here all day. Please, let me help." I pleaded.

"But we don't have it here, and besides Dad said he was going to go to the grocery store tomorrow." He reasoned.

"Yuri, I don't mind going to out to get you what you need." I

"Really?" Yuri's eyes lit up.

"Really. So what do you want?"

"Ramune, vanilla yogurt, pretzels, and some strawberry jelly, if it wouldn't be too much trouble." Yuri requested, gazing down as if he was too embarrassed to look me in the eye. I bent over and gave him a soft kiss, then gave another to our daughter.

"Anything for you." I declared, grinning.

I put on some real clothing, and try quietly walk out our room, but Makkachin walked up and gives me a sad whimper. I gesture for him to follow, and he bounces up like a rubber ball and runs to my side. Ever since Baby Nikiforova has been inside Yuri, I feel like I've been abandoning everyone, but I with Makkachin, it's been the worst.

In the day, Hasetsu is busy with people, and during this time of year, it's so sunny that nobody ever turns on their lights. At night, however, Makka and I own the street. Crickets chirp and flies flock to the electric street lights, which give the sidewalk a warm yellow tone. The late June air feels like a warm blanket has been dropped around my shoulders as if the atmosphere is trying to bid us a safe passage on our adventure to the 24/7 CVS, which is about 10 minutes away. The ocean quietly plays in The background, making everything peaceful and serene. If only Yuri could experience this magical night with us, I know he would love it as much as I do.

Inside CVS, felt like an entirely different planet compared to outside. The bright white lights made it nearly impossible to see anything out of the windows. The ocean's peaceful song was replaced by humming overhead lights. the shiny potato chip bags in the snack section seems to catch the light and use it to paint pictures on their fronts as if trying to dress themselves up. I grab a small bag of pretzels, and hold them in my hand, not needing a basket.

What else did Yuri want again? I pull out my phone and open up the list I made. Before I even get to the notes app, however, I Take a minute to admire Baby Nikiforova, my daughter. I have her picture on both my lock screen and home screen. Every minute that passes shortens the agonizing wait that I have to meet her. She needs a real name though. I'll bring it up to Yuri tomorrow. When the minute is up, I remember why I'm here and open up my notes. Ah, that's it. One bottle of classically flavored Ramune, vanilla yogurt, and not fancy strawberry jelly.

Makka and I head over to the refrigerated aisle, and to our delight, everything we need is within arms reach. I take all of the Items and make my way to the cashier. On the way, I also pick up some of the peppermint hard candies Yuri loves. Even though he's not out of them, I don't want to run into a situation where we are out of them, and can't find them anywhere. When we make our way to the checkout area, I put off of Yuri's items on the conveyor belt.

"That's a well-behaved dog you have there." The cashier comments. They are rather tall and Lanky and look to be in their early twenties. Their green-tipped hair is cut rather short to their head, and their name tag reads Goya Hibiki.

"Thank you!" I exclaimed.

"You're welcome. How are you this evening? Or morning, it's kind of hard to tell." They grumbled, rather slowly ringing up the yogurt.

"I'm doing great, how are you?" I cheerfully respond.

"Honestly, just tired. My boss put me on the night shift nearly every Thursday night from now until February, so I'm having a fun day" they sarcastically replied, rolling their eyes. At that very moment, I decide that They needed to be cheered up.

"Think on the bright side! People must buy strange things this time of the day!" I mention.

"Yea, yea they do." They cooly griped, eyeing Makka. "This is the tamest purchase I've seen yet. However story wise, the dog makes up for it"

"Don't worry, Yuri is probably going to somehow mix it all together." I console.

"Oh my god that makes me want to puke just thinking about it Please don't tell me Yuri's the dog!" The cashier pleaded.

"Het, Het, Yuri's my husband! He's pregnant with our daughter." I giggled. "This is Makkachin."

"Thank god. That makes much more sense. Congratulations, by the way." Goya sighs, as they ring up the peppermints.

"Do you want to see pictures of her?!" I offer. Maybe that will cheer him up. It certainly works for me!

"Sure." they monotonically said.

I quickly pull out my phone and open up my photos, then the folder that holds the pictures of the baby, and handed Goya the phone, All while wearing a prideful smile.

"Ok I'm not that into kids but your baby is adorable. Congratulations again. 1,600 yen please." Goya congratulates.

"Thank you. I'll probably see you again next week!" I wink, Me and Makka leaving the store through the sliding glass doors.

"Probably see you then." They echo.

I slide open the door to our room and place the bag on Yuri's nightstand. He checks the content of the bag and starts to tear up.

"Viktor! I can't believe you got all of this AND peppermints!" He starts to cry. I nod my head, and lie down next to him, putting my arm around his shoulders, and give him another soft kiss, which is made salty by the tears.

"Anything for you," I reply. And just like I thought, he mixes everything together. And just like the Cashier thought, to me it looks rather unappetizing, to say the least. But I couldn't care less. As long as Yuri's happy, and the Baby is healthy, everything else in the world doesn't matter.


	18. Chapter 16

"What did I miss?" Jefferson sang to a jaunty tune. Yurio had just finished up practice, and was listening to Hamilton, his new favorite music, Hamilton. on his way to his room at Yu-topia in. At practice, he had worked mostly on his short program (which was to Burn, from Hamilton of course), but still put some work into his free skate (which was to Grenade by Bruno Mars). It was already the fifth of July, and Yurio knew he only had to wait a few more weeks to hear the Grand Prix assistants. However, to his utter annoyance, his first event was stupid qualifying competitions. For Yurio however, it seemed more like a glorified dress rehearsal then an actual competition. After all, all the other skaters that could even come close to rivaling him would have pre-qualified for the national finals. Unluckily for Yurio, this was his first year skating under Japan, so hw literally had no choice. However, whenever he complained, Viktor always pointed out that The JSF had been rather understanding and weren't making him get a Japanese citizenship. So in retrospect, Competing in qualifying competitions wasn't nearly as bad. Yurio still thought that not being able to skate for his own country, Russia, just because he was Pan, was inconceivably stupid.

As Yurio passed by the beach, he took a second to gaze at the scenery. Unlike early months, the beach was crowded with nosey tourists, many of them families. The line where the beach started was always full of Summer-only stalls and vendors. Yurio's route back to Yu-topia in took him by them every day, so all of of the Touristly snow globes, cheap beach supplies at over inflated prices, and specialty food didn't faze him. However, the beach-goers and all of the vendors made a shit ton of noise. So Yurio whipped out his phone and turned up Tomas Jefferson.

"BUT WHO'S WAITING FOR ME WHEN I STEP INTO PLACE-" Thomas Jefferson sung loudly to Yurio. He kept on walking, until he passed an air-brush T-shirt vendor. It was just your normal, run-of-the-mill tourist beach side t-shirt vendor, where you could buy a t-shirt that could have whatever you wanted painted onto it. But it wasn't the t-shirts that caught his eye.

It was a large piece of Fabric, painted into the Japanese flag. But it wasn't exactly the Japanese flag. The only red on the outermost ring. Inside of it, was a ring of orange, then yellow, then green, then blue, and finally in the center was a perfect circle of purple. The artist had mashed together the Japanese and Pride flag, and all in the same spray-paint style of the t-shirts.

"Do you like the 旗?" A young voice asked. Yurio took off his headphones, paused Thomas Jefferson, and spun around to the direction of the voice.

It belonged to a girl, who looked to be about 9 or 10 years old. She was wearing a school uniform that had a deep green pleated skirt and a pale yellow short sleeve shirt, which had cuffs and a sailor collar in the same green as the skirt. Her hair was in two low pigtails, which were tied with yellow ribbons. In her hand was a pink, glittery, wiring fidget spinner.

"Huh?"

"旗!" She aggravatedly explained, pointing to the flag. Yurio made a quick mental note that 旗 was flag.

"Yes, did you make it?" He asked.

"Yea. But my big sister Hinta helped. My names Etsuko. I'm 9 years old."

"I'm Yuri Plisetsky, and I'm 16." Yurio shot back, a little sarcastically.

"Do you like it? I できる make you one お望みならば." Etsuko ased.

"Yes, I like it. But I want a different one." Yurio requested, silently cursing Japanese for being so stupid hard.

"I dont undersnat your 音声" Etsuko staed. Yurip did a quick word reference check,a nd made a heavy sigh when he realized she was intentionally insulting his thick-ass accent.

Yurio repeated the sentence, but slower, hoping she would understand him.

"What したい you want 次に?" Etsuko offered. Yurio quickly looked up what he wanted to say on his phone.

"A combination of the Russian and Pan flag."

"What do それらの外観 like?"

Yurio showed her pictures of the flags on his phone.

"Ok! I ヒンターを手に入れましょう。私は正しいでしょう you!" She sang she skipped to the other side of the stall, then brought over a teenager, who wore jean shorts and a pale blue shirt, which had a Blue puzzle piece on it, and underneath read '自閉症が話す'.

"Hi, I'm Sato Hinta, how can I help you?" She greeted, much more professional than her younger sister.

"I was buying a flag from your sister." Yurio stated, making sure his voice was firm enough to let the older sister know that he really meant business.

"ああ、それはあなたがやっていることです。 You、あなたがすることができます...私に教えてください Boy この素敵な?"

"まあ、彼はコンボを欲しいと言った flag 虹のように。 しかし、Japanese とレインボーの代わりに、彼は Russian Flagと Friying pan flag を望んでいた ."

"Frying pan?"

"Pansexual." Yurio clarified.

"それは理にかなっています。 ねえ悦子は、マシンにファブリックを設定することができます?"

"確かに!" Etsuko cried. After putting on an apron to protect her uniform, She took a long rectangular piece fabric and clipped it in front of a cardboard canvas. Hinta took two pieces of paper, and quickly used color pencils to sketch out the two flags, for reference. She also helped her clip the pictures right next to the cardboard canvas, and helped set up the air brush.

First, Etsuko took a pencil and divided the fabric vertically in half, then into 3 even seconds horaxonaly. She used some more paper to block off the bottom two sections, and filled the air brush with pink fabric paint. At first, she painted a light layer of paint over the right half of the fabric. There must have been something special in the paint, because it dried in a few second. When the first layer was done, she sprayed another layer, but this time, didn't go all the way to the pencil line, but stopped a few centimeters away. She continued this until their was a nice white to pink gradient on the top row.

Next, she took new paper and place it so only the middle rectangle. Under the watchful eye of her sister, Etsuko swapped out the pink paint cartridge out for a yellow one. She used the same technique as before to make a white to yellow gradient. Then she swapped out the yellow for a dark blue, and staring on the right this time, made a blue gradient, turning what was a white to yellow gradient into a dark blue to yellow gradient.

For the final horizontal line, Etsuko repeated the exact same steps as before, but with a deep red and a light blue instead of dark blue and yellow. When the deep red to sky blue gradient was done, she removed the paper from the cloth.

As a finishing touch, Etsuko flipped the flag over, swapped out the deep red paint cartridge for a black one, took out a stencil, and and air brushed her signature, 佐藤悦子 on the back.

"Hey Hinta! 来る look! I did good 右?" Etsuko asked, turning around.

"I すべてが You だと思うのは美しいので、おそらく you 顧客に質問する必要があります if he likes it."

"Do you like it?" Etsuko asked.

"I really like it!" Yurio explained. The way the gradient were painted made it look the Russian flag and the Pan flag chlorides together, and had merged into one, beautiful thing.

"I キャッシャーに持ってきて you!" Etsuko exclaimed, un-clipping the flag from the cardboard canvas, skipping over the the cashier, who was the girls'

Mother. When she saw the Yurio walk over, she smiled, and helped Etsuko put the folded flag in a plastic shopping bag. In the bag however, she slipped a piece of folded up paper, and when Yurio went to pay the the flag, she gestured for him to stop, go on his way and read the paper. Yurio thanked her, and Etsuko, then Finished the walk to Yu-Topia inn, so he could use his computer to decode whatever was on the paper. Hopefully it would make the rather odd ending experience make some sense.

When he did get back, to his great surprise, the note was written in Russian. 'If she knew Russian, then why didn't she say anything?' He thought to himself, and started to read.

I apologize for using Google Translate to make it more understandable if it becomes an ambiguous wording.

Dear Yury Plisetsky;

I'm Etsuko's mother. If you could not tell, Etsuko has autism. Social meetings for her are rather complicated, and when she gains courage, people, even children of her age and younger, usually treat her as if she was 3 years old, so she has no friends. But not you. Even in spite of the fact that you fought against the Japanese, you still helped her and treated her as much as to her, a bright 9-year-old child with an artistic gift. And for this I wanted to say "Much thanks". I've never seen her more socially busy before. Much thanks for taking the time to work with her, Much thanks for opening up a new part for her. I never thought that it was possible.

More Much thanks;

Sato Noa.


	19. Chapter 17

**_Disclaimer: This chapter does touch upon Gay Conversation therapy(A.K.A. Shitty people doing shitty shit to try and trun Gay people straight because they are shit people who need to get a life) and I do have a FAKE link to a YouTube video. Don't worry, I will be back to much more light-hearted happy topics next chapter, because I will be switching back to the Baby. I apologize again, thanks for reading and putting up with me._**

The next evening after dinner, Yurio played "The Election of 1800", logged on to his tumbler, hoping he could forget the awkwardness that now surrounded meals. Because the Pork Cutlet bowl couldn't get out of bed for whatever reason, Viktor understandably now spent all of his time with him and would take both of their meals into the bedroom. Viktor and the other yuri had invited him to eat with them, but it just didn't seem right to accept that invitation somehow. That left Yurio in the dining room with the rest of the Katsuki Family. It wasn't that they hadn't been incredibly kind and generous, but without Viktor and the other Yuri, it felt to Yurio almost like he was intruding on their family. Not to mention the fact that it was basically an exercise in a stupid thing that Yurio detested, speaking Japanese. He knew that they weren't trying to exclude him, or make him feel as if he was just a guest, just peering in on their happy lives through a window, but to Yurio, it often felt like that. And he couldn't just eat alone, in the public dining area, he tried that once and nobody would let him.

As he opened up his dash and poked around for a bit when he got a notification saying he had a new private message 'How the hell is messaging me?' He wondered, and opened up the inbox. He silently hoped that it wasn't anyone he knew, and had succeeded in keeping this part of his fanboy lifestyle secret.

ElizaSchuyler103197: https/watch?v=-xghiulasjk. Moving is Easy young Man, lying is harder

'What the hell?' Yurio mentally exclaimed, paused "The election of 1800" and opened up the video, and clicked play.

The video was security footage from a dimly lit room, which held two chairs, each on one side of a table. On the table was a metal box, that had buttons and switches and levers on it, and has sticky pads connected to meal wires protruding our form it. In front of the box, was a laptop. There was some writing on the screen, but even though it was the Cyrillic alphabet, It was still a different language, rendering it useless when it came to giving Yurio any clue of what he was watching.

Two people were ushered into the room, One was what looked to be a man in his late 50s, he was bald, and from what yurio could tell was wearing an all black suit. The second person in the room was a teenage girl, who was wearing a blood red tank top, skin tight black jeans, and a skull hair clip in her pixie cut red hair. The man sat in the chair facing the box, and the girl sat in the one facing the laptop. She looked around, and yurio could almost feel her dismay as the door that they entered through shut.

The man said some things that the security camera didn't pick up, and the girl nodded her head. He took 4 sticky pads that were attached to the box, removed the backing, and placed them on the girl's arm, not seeming to notice the fact that she was getting more uncomfortable by the minute. A pit stared for form in Yurio's stomach, something was going to go terribly wrong, he could sense it.

The girl oped up the laptop, and the man hovered his hands over the buttons on the metal box. On the laptop was a picture of a woman, in a rather tight, low cut dress. The girl tried to keep a straight face, but couldn't, and when the older man saw a slight smile on her face, he mashed the button on the box. The girl's arm that held the pads started to spasm, and she scrunched up her face trying to hide the pain. And just like that, the security video was over, and on the screen was a rainbow pride flag, with the words Кінцева конверсійна терапія. Зараз. Yurio Typed the words into google translate and found out it was Ukrainian for End Conversion Therapy. Now.

AlexanderHamilton1301: WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?! 

ElizaSchuyler103197: I can't tell you

AlexanderHamilton1301: WHY NOT?! 

ElizaSchuyler103197: Did you not see the video?

AlexanderHamilton1301: TELL ME WHO YOU ARE OR I AM REPORTING YOU!

ElizaSchuyler103197: Trust me, It will all make sense later, but nobody can know I sent that to you.

AlexanderHamilton1301: WHY THE FUCK NOT!

ElizaSchuyler103197: Yuri, you're smarter than this!

AlexanderHAmilton1301: WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU?!

ElizaSchuyler103197: I will tell you in Nice.

AlexanderHamilton1301: NO, YOU WILL TELL ME NOW ASSHOLE!

ElizaSchuyler103197 has left the conversation.

Yurio slammed his laptop shut. Who the hell was ElizaSchuyler103197? Why the hell had they messaged him that video?! More importantly, how the hell did they know who he was?! And why couldn't they tell him who they were? Well, if ElizaSchuyler103197 wasn't going to tell him who they were, then he would figure it out himself.

He opened back up his laptop, and when he tired to go their profile, he was met with a message reading, "Sorry, this user has deleted their account. Here are some other blogs you might like?"

'What the hell?!' Yurio thought to himself. He quickly opened back up his messages, and nearly through his laptop against the wall when they weren't there. How the hell would he figure out who they were if they ahs basically erased themselves from the earth? He looked at the clock and realized that he did not have the time to figure this out. Yurio let out a largely frustrated scream and was surprised when he hared a knocking the door.

"Yurio, what's wrong?" Viktor called.

"Come in." Yurio hissed, and the door opened, revealing a slightly confused, slight unconfined Viktor, accompanied by Makkachin.

"Seriously Yuro, what's wrong?" Viktor asked again.

"This random person messaged me, sending me a link to this freaky-ass Ukrainian PSA about Conversion therapy, said 'Moving is easy young man, lying is harder', refused to tell me who the hell they were, and vanished off the face of the earth," Yurio explained. Viktor thought for a second, then answered.

"Ask Yuri to do some digging. He's really good with technology, and has nothing better to do."

"Fine." Yurio huffed, grabbed his laptop, and stormed off to Viktor's room. When he got there, he barreled right in.

"Hey Yurio, what's up?" The Pork Cutlet bowl asked.

"Viktor said you would help me figure out who the hell this creep was.s"

"Wait, what happened?"

Yurio explained what had happened.

"I'd be glad to help. If it wouldn't be too much trouble, could you maybe drop off your laptop here tomorrow before you leave for practice? If I'm lucky, I might be able to have some answers for you by the time you get back."

The next evening, July 7th, Yurio followed Viktor right into the bedroom where the other Yuri was still lying.

"What did you find out?!" Yurio demand.

"Be polite Yurio, start a conversion first."

"Viktor, it's fine, if you were in the same situation you would want information as soon as possible.

"So what did you find out?!"

"Whoever is ElizaSchuyler103197, really didn't want to be tracked," Yuri explained, as he opened up yurio's laptop. Yurio raised right beside him to check the screen. "I went through your history, and after a few attempts, I was able to track the sender of the messages to somewhere in central Asia. I want able to get a clear pinpoint though, so it could have been sent anywhere from southern Russia, to northern china. The only definite thing I was able to confirm was that whoever sent the message did not send it from Ukraine. I also contracted the tumbler staff, and they told me that the account had been created right before the original message was sent, and deleted 10 minutes later, so it seems like the only reason the person made the account was to contact you."

"Yeah, that's great, but WHO ARE THEY AND HOW DO THEY KNOW WHO I AM?!"

"I'm sorry, I was getting to that. Now, this is just a hunch, but tier Username seems to mirror yours. Does the numbers 1301 mean anything significant, or are they just a random bunch of numbers?" Yuri questioned.

"It's my birthday, March first, 2001," Yuri answered.

"Great, because following that train of thought, the numbers 103197 would make October 31rst, 1997, which might be the birthday of the mystery person. Unfortunately for evidence, that's all I could really find, I'm so sorry that I couldn't get a definite answer for your Yurio." Yuri apologies.

Yurio contemplated the evidence. The fact that whoever ElizaSchuyler103197 was made the account just to send him the message. And Pork cutlet bowl was right, their username seemed to mirror his. Then a realization hit Yurio like a train. He quickly bolted out of the room and into his own. If the numbers were really a birthday, then the person would be 18. And if the were trying to mirror his username, then saying Eliza would mean that they considered themselves his lover, and there was only one person he could think of in central Asia that would do something so thought out.

Otabek.


	20. Chapter 18

_July 11th, week 23_

"Are you ready?" Viktor asked, beaming. He's always super giddy and happy whenever we get back from an ultrasound. I, however, was a bit more concerned than him, because the placenta still hadn't moved. She, however, was progressing excellently.

AFter the last Ultrasound, Viktor and I decided that we would each come up with a list of 5 names, and after we had the next ultrasound (which was today), I would use the two lists to finally pick a name for our baby. So I nod my head and open up my laptop. Viktor, who was sitting next to me, pulled out a paper list from his pocket.

My bulleted list consisted of 5 Japanese names; Aimi, Minami, Mai, Sakura, and Kimiko. Underneath each bullet was the Kanji for each name, which was; 愛美, 愛海, 舞, 桜, and 君子. It also included what each name meant, Aimi meant love and beauty, Manami meant Love and the ocean, Mai meant dancer, Sakura meant cherry blossom, and Kimiko means noble child. I really think that names really should be chosen based on what they mean. I felt a little bad completely leaving out Russian names, but She's going to be a Japanese citizen, so I thought that she should have a Japnese first name, you know? And I really did try to find a name like Yuri, that existed in both Japanese and Russian, but I couldn't find one.

But when Viktor peered over my shoulder to look at my list, his gleeful smile was replaced by a disappointed and slightly exasperated frown.

"Whats wrong?" I ask. He opens up his piece of paper, and I see that his list; Александра(Alexandria), Татьяна(Tatiana), Екатерина(Catherine), Наталья,(Natalia) and

Анастасия(Anastasiya) are all names of Russian royalty.

We look each other in the eyes and sigh, realizing this process was going to be a lot harder than we originally thought.

"Won't it sound strange if Her first name is Japanese, but her surname is Russian?" Viktor reasons.

"No, if her last name is Russian, then she needs a Japanese first name so it will more correct on Citizenship forms and stuff like that." I calmly retort. We can work this out, it will be fine. "Maybe we could find a Japanese name that has an equivalent one in Russian? Then we can call her that name as a nickname." I speculate

"So I just have to settle for a nickname?!" Viktor scoffs.

I feel myself start to tear up. "I'm sorry, but I just feel really strongly about this!"

"Well, I do too!" Viktor shouts witch scares the tears out of my eyes.

"I know you do!" I sob. "I really did try to find a name like Yuri that was both Japanese and Russian but I could find one and I thought you would understand!"

Viktor got up from the bed and started to walk outside. "Let's just each take a few minutes to ourselves, you clearly need some time to cool down." He stated as he left the room.

Viktor stormed down the hallway, trying to get outside before he could get angry. Even though he knew that the hormones inside Yuri were making him an emotional loose cannon, It was still frustrating that Yuri had completely rejected the notion of a Russian name. He needed someone to talk to, someone that would understand. But who?

Just then, his phone buzzed. He took it out, (the lock and home screen had been replaced with pictures from that morning's ultrasound) and saw he had a text from Takeshi. Perfect, He would know what to do.

Takeshi: How'd the ultrasound go?

Viktor: The placenta still hasn't moved, but the Baby is progressing along perfectly.

Takeshi: Glad I asked.

Viktor: Did you and Yuuko have trouble deciding on the girls' names?

Takeshi: Let me guess, Yuri wants to do a Japanese name and you want to do Russian, and now are fighting?

Viktor: I wouldn't call it fighting, more like majorly disagreeing

Takeshi: And you want my advice on what to do?

Viktor: Yes

Takeshi: As much as I bet it must stink, I would go with Yuri on this one just for citizenship reasons, it would really help her out to have a Japanese first name.

Viktor: Yuri did suggest finding a Japanese name with a Russian equivalent as a nickname

Takeshi: That sounds like a wonderful Idea, Viktor. I know you and Yuri will pick a beautiful name.

Viktor: thank you?

Takeshi: Yuuko took my phone.

Viktor: That makes more sense. Thanks again for your help.

Takeshi: if you ever need anything, the Nishikori family has always got your back.

Viktor turned his phone off and put it back in his pocket. He knew what He had to do.

Viktor magically walked right into our room the second I had fully calmed down.

"I'm sorry Yuri. I should have listened to you." He apologized

"No, Vikor, it's understandable that you want her to have a Russian name, and it makes sense-" I start, but then Viktor cuts me off.

"I know, but you're right. In the long run, it will benefit her to have a Japanese first name. And your idea of having a Japanese name with a Russian equivalent as a nickname is a very good idea. I think we should go with that." Viktor proposed.

"Really Viktor, are you sure?" I ask, wanting him to be just as happy with whatever we decide as I am.

"I'm sure. I even made a new list, see" Viktor offered, pulling up a new list on his phone. They were the Japanese names, and in parentheses next to them, where the Russian equivalents.

Akane (Akilina)

Takara (Tatiana)

Natsumi (Natalya)

Emi (evgeniya)

Sakura (Sayna)

"Thank you so much, Viktor. I think this would be easier to chose now." I smile. But, Boy was I wrong.


	21. Chapter 19

_July 18th, week 24_

"Hey Mari, do you think you could take a look at something?!" I ask, as my sister is about to leave the room. Back when I was first put on bed rest, Mari volunteered to be my 'helper' when Viktor's at practice. Normally she just gets me food and stuff, even though she offers to hang out and chat and stuff like that. And I never know how to respond, because I don't want to keep her cooped up in Vikor and my's room (which my parents have started calling the Nikiforov suite), yet at the same time, I get rather desperate for companionship. Makkachin does help soften the blow though. The only problem is keeping him off my stomach.

"Sure, what is it?" She nonchalantly responds, walking back over to the bed. I opened up a list on my laptop.

"Viktor and I are between 2 names for the baby, so we thought that we could maybe run a little poll to see what everyone else thinks. It's ok if you don't want to pick, I completely understand. "I explain. Viktor has been doing this sort of thing all week, and it's definitely been working.

"Yuri. You don't have to act like I'm being dragged into all this. I volunteered to help you remember?" She explained.

"Yeah, but that just for getting food and stuff. This is way bigger and more important. I mean this will affect literally the entire world I mean-" I pant, and the world starts to get blurry and spin. I mean, it won't just affect her but whatever she does will be recorded in history as whatever namewepickforherandwhatifwepicksomethingterribleand-. Mari firmly places her hands on my shoulders and looks me dead in the face.

"Yuri, take a deep breath."She commands. I do. When we were younger, and even before I was officially diagnosed with anxiety, Mari's always been excellent at handling my attacks, sometimes even better than mom or dad. "Let me take a look at that list."

The list wasn't even technically a list, just two names, Sakura-Sanya and Mai-Maryana. It took us forever to weed it down from the list of 10 we had last week. And while the names all sound great, Something just seems wrong with Mai-Maryanna, yet also whenever I think of it, I feel like it's so close to being the perfect name, but somehow is missing the mark.however on the other hand, I can look at pictures of the baby and call her Sakura, but I feel a bit reserved, mainly because the name Sakura just feels too literal to me.

"Oh, and If it won't be too much trouble, could you maybe put a checkmark or an x or something next to the one you like best?" I request. I study Mari's thinking face, and it takes her a few minutes to decide.

"Sakura-Sanya. It's a bit cliche, but I think it best out of the list." She answers. Typing an X next to the name, and stars to walk out of the room. "Remember, when you need something, just text me."

"Thanks, Mari. Wait, best out of the options?!"

A 10 minute walk away from the Inn, Viktor was asking literally everyone in Ice Castle the same question. Takeshi, Axel, and Luz had voted for Sakura-Sanya, while Yuuko and Loop pickled Mai-Maryana.

"Hey Yurio, want to do something for me?" He asked as Yurio skated off the ice to take a break.

"No! I am not going to participate in another of your stupid name polls!" The teenager exclaimed, then put on his head phones. "Figure it Out Viktor."

"I'm starting to think that maybe everyone is starting to get a bit annoyed by our ongoing saga of picking a name for Baby Nikiforova," Viktor observed that night.

"You're just starting to realize that?" I semi-sarcastically shoot back. "But in all seriousness, we really need to pick something."

"Да. But nothing is quite right." Vikor added.

"Exactly! And I even tried doing a poll today and adding your results, both names have exactly 4 votes!" I sympathize. (my parents were both for Mai-Maryana)

"In all seriousness though, we need to pick something tonight, or Yurio is going to strangle me."

"Yeah, you're absolutely right."

We both sat (well technically neither of us were sitting, Viktor had taken to lying down next to me because he reasoned 'If you can't sit up then I wouldn't sit up either'. What did I do to deserve someone as amazing as him?), trying to push our brains to the limit, to think of the perfect name. It's out there, I know it, we just have to find it. And to our great surprise, an answer comes to us, in the form of Yurio throwing open the door, storming in our room, slamming down a piece of paper, storming right back out, and slamming the door behind him.

"What was that about?" I ponder, as Viktor grabs the sheet of paper.

On it was written:

The community can't deal with this anymore. Just pick something that's not Japanese or Russian. That would be enough.

Alexandria

Lorette

Marie

And as we read it, I want to laugh, but then something rises up from inside me. I turn over to Viktor, and I can tell that he is experiencing the same thing. The last name on the list. It's French, but the Spanish version was the name of the place we got engaged. That ticks off my meaningful name box. And I know that Masha(ka) is the Russian diminutive of it. Viktor's eyes and mine lock, and at the same time, we both say our Daughters name.

"Maria."

And as the weight flys off of my shoulders, I feel the most magical thing on the entire earth.

I feel Maria kicking.


	22. Chapter 20

_3:32 pm(15:32), July 25th, week 25_

"Hey, Etsuko!" Yurio called as he walked by the airbrush t-shirt vendor. Every day on his way back to the Inn, if Etsuko was there, Yurio would always stop to chat. Even though the conversations only ever lasted about 5 minutes, something about seeing Etsuko's face light up whenever she saw her "Russian Friend" made his day.

And somehow these small conversations opened up a new supply of Motivation for Yurio, and his Japanese was improving every day. Etsuko also liked to teach him Japanese words(she would point to an object and say the word), and in Return, Yurio would tell her what the world was in either English or Russian, whatever she felt like learning.

She was at the airbrush station and had her noise-canceling blue headphones on( Yurio noticed she often wore them when the beach noise was at its peak), so she silently waved back. Yurio walked next to her.

"What are you working on?" He asked, peering over her shoulder.

"It's a shirt それは意味する look like 2 異なる jackets from a music 演奏," Etsuko explained. Yurio took a look at the color cartridges she had picked out, then to the pattern she had the paper on the shirt, then back to the colors, and as it clicked in his brain exactly what 'Music' Etsuko was talking about, a familiar voice popped up behind him.

"Well if it isn't Aaron Burr!" Aiko, the boy who had introduced Hamilton to Yurio, sang.

"Sir!" Yurio shot back, spinning to face him, and grinning.

"I didn't think that you would make it." Aiko continued. The two Hamilton fans had gotten to exchange numbers but only had been able to talk a little bit, because they had an almost opposite schedule.

"I came to say congratulations" Yurio jauntily jeered back.

"Ok, I have a few questions for you. First of, which character are you Why?" Aiko burst out, not wasting a second.

Yurio thought for a second. "Alexander Hamilton, because I always speak my mind and I hate JJ as much as he Hates Jefferson." He reasoned

"Not to mention you both can't lose an argument!" Viktor butted in, as he strolled catch up with his younger brother.

"Who's JJ?" Etsuko innocently wondered as she Finished spray painting the blue side of the T-shirt.

"JJ is a Skater from Canada who is a sh-"

"SILLY PERSON AND NOT A BAD WORD 子供は聴く必要がない!" Viktor loudly interrupted.

"You are the worst Burr," Yurio stated, without even turning to face Viktor.

"Hey! I thought I was Burr because I inspired you!" Aiko angry exclaimed.

"No, The situation demanded that reference. And besides, Viktor isn't even Bur. He's Washington." Yurio explained, with high levels of Sass.

"Then who am I?" Aiko inquired.

"Lafayette." He confidently responded right away.

"Why?' Aiko requested.

"Do you need a list?" yurio semi-sarcastically offered.

"If you truly are Hamilton, you would have a reason" Aiko nitpicked.

"I made one last week," Yurio replied, pulled out his phone, and opened up a Google Doc.

"So that's what you were doing when I asked if you were working on Japanese." Viktor marveled.

"Calm down, I wrote half of it in Japanese so you couldn't get on my back about it."

Me= Hamilton

I Hate JJ and I always speak my mind

Otabek=Eliza

He's smart and my boyfriend

Viktor=Washington

My coach and won't let me fight people

Pork Cutlet Bowl=Mulligan

Did spy stuff that one time

Okaasan=Angelica

Eliza was taken, her love is self-sacrificing

Etsuko=Peggy

My youngest friend and is always happy

JJ=Jefferson

Both total shitheads

Yakov=Burr

Started out as a sort of Idol the turned into ASSHOLE. I would root for JJ just to keep one of Yakov's skaters from winning

lillia=King George

Annoying as all hell, she thinks I can't possibly survive without her, and I have hated her with an undying passion since day 1.

Georgi=The guy in farther refuted

Lillia and Yakov's bigoted dramatic minion who will never actually amount to anything.

Aiko=Lafayette

Can talk and rap the fastest.

"You think I can rap fast?" Aiko exclaimed, after he read the list Aiko would do covers of the songs for YouTube and Tumblr, and for some reason, would always text Yurio the covers before he posted them.

"You can rap at all!" Viktor added.

"Are you sure he's Washington and NOT Burr?" Aiko leaned over to whisper in Yurio's ear.

"Trust me, The position of Bur is filled," Yuri whispered back

"Oh yeah, Yakov. That guy must be a real asshole." Aiko hypothesized, going out of the lean.

"He is." yurio and Viktor answered at the exact same time.

"The second question, have the assignments been posted yet, and more important, do you get to go to new York?" Aiko questioned. This year, Skate America happened to be in New York City, so obviously, Yurio really wanted to get assigned there, but unfortunately, it was not to be.

"Yes, I got the assignments, but no I'm not going to New York.." He sighed

Aiko's face made it look like HE had been personally offended and disappointed that Yurio didn't get to go. "Can you change it?! You have to be the only Hamilton fan in the GRand Prix, aren't you doing burn for your short program?" Aiko quavered.

"No. Do you want to hear where I actually am assigned instead of moping about me missing out on NYC?" Yurio sighed, knowing from experience that the only way to get over bad things was to move on and never discuss them ever again.

"Sure, but I will never be satisfied," Aiko mumbled back.

"I'm going to the Second event, The Trophée de France, which is in Nice. My second event is the last one, the NHK trophy, which will be in Fukuoka." Yurio informed. "Stupid JJ gets to Skate America, but I'll crush him in Nice."

"While it's no NYC, you get to compete locally. Maybe I can convince my mom to get tickets. She'd be glad that I'm not begging for Hamilton." Aiko suggested, giggling.

"What does ticket mean?" Etsuko chimed in, as she finished up the last half of the t-shirt.

"切符売場. Aiko wants to watch me skate." Yurio translated, with the help of his phone.

"At the Fukuoka 競争?" She clarified.

"Yea." A large smile spread across Etsuko's face.

"What's with that?" Yurio asked

"It's a suppose! I'll ask mommy if I can tell you." She giggled, unclipping the shirt and running it up to her Mom. They conferred, and Estko ran back.

"The stadium has a high-up special not-loud section and usually as good grades present the two of us go see Disney On Ice, but because of the Grand Prix, they aren't having it this year. But she said that as a Birthday, getting good grades, AND a Christmas present, I could go to the Grand Prix event! And now it's even better because you will be there!" She announced, hopping up and down like a rubber ball.

"Really?! Etsuko that's awesome!'" Yurio examined.

"Lucky!" Aiko huffed. "By the time I get home and ask my mom, all the good spots will be gone."

"Yurio, I really need to get back. Just come home when you're done talking." Vikor instructed, and started to walk again.

"You should go then. Bye Yuri!" Estko waived.

"Congrats again, Alexander, smile more!" Aiko cried, as Yurio turned to leave.

"See you on the other side of the war!" Yurio called back, and for the first time in his career, was genuinely excited about the location of his assignments. Not to mention Otabek was given identical assignments, which made up for the lack of New York City.


	23. Chapter 21

**Hi, everyone! I can't believe we're alright at chapter 21!!! I just wanted to thank everyone so so so SO much for taking the time to read my work, without you guys, there is no way I would have found the motivation to write this much! I also want to let you amazing people know about some format changes. So before this chapter, I've been switching plot lines every two chapters (2 chapters of Maria/The Baby then 2 chapters of Yurio), and I haven't done a time jump more than about 7 weeks. But starting now, I'm going to be staying rather steadily on Yurio for about the next 2 or 3 chapters (including this one), and after that, I will be focusing entirely on Maria and her development. What I do have left of focusing on Yurio will be the Tropeé de France and the NHK Trophy. Again thank you so so so SO much for reading I love you all!!!**

 _3:37 am, Nishikori House_

 _October 27th, 2017_

 _Hasetsu Japan, Week 36_

"Yurochka! Are you ready to go?" Okaasan called. A few days after the assignments were announced, Yurio tagged along with her to get something at the mall. They had so much fun they ended up staying until nearly 10:0pm (22:00), and as a result, Yurio stayed the night. To Okaasan and the other Nishikori's, It felt so right to have Yurio there that they invited him to stay permanently. Yurio agreed in a heartbeat and now took to calling Takeshi Otousan, which was Dad in Japanese, and triplets his sisters. For what felt like the first time, he was truly part of a complete family and would do anything to keep it that way.

"Yes!" Yurio grumbled as he staggered out of his room, lugging a medium sized tiger print suitcase behind him.

"Did you pack everything? Like your skates, your costumes, casual clothes, toothpaste, fancy clothes-" Okaasan rattled on.

"Yes, Okaasan. Why do I even need to bring that suit anyway?" Yurio debated.

"You'll see!" She winked, then ran over to give him a big hug.

"You're not excited at all." Yurio sarcastically commented as the pair left the house.

"It's our first time in France! How could I not be excited?" Okaasan inquired.

"Calm down, we do NOT need two Viktors!" Yurio pleaded.

"What do mean?" Okaasan inquired.

"Do you not remember when Viktor first came to Hasetsu? He's the most over-enthusiastic tourist I've ever seen!" Yurio reminded.

"You're right, I'll try not to get too crazy." Okaasan agreed as they met up with Vikor. And with that, the team walked in sleepy silence to the train station, then into the airport.

 _1:00 pm(13:00), Hôtel Patinage Artistique_

 _October 26th, 2017_

 _Nice, France_

"Viktor, why the heck are you plugged a brick into your phone?" Yurio questioned, as they walked into the hotel.

"It's not a brick, it's a portable charging device, that doubles as a Wifi router. Yuri and Masha can't come with us, so we're going to keep in touch the entire time via. Facetime." Viktor explained. Yurio put his head in his hands, trying to figure out how didn't see this coming. Viktor had done the exact same thing at the Japanese qualifying competitions, and it was the second most irritating thing Viktor had ever done. (the first was insulting Lin-Manuel Miranda and Hamilton by belching a terrible cover of dear Theodosia)

"That's smart. That way you won't be forced to live next to power outlets like you were, and it wouldn't cost you a fortune." Okaasan praised.

"You have Yuri on FaceTime! Can I say Hi?!" Minami squealed. Kenjirou Minami was competing in the Grand Prix Series this year, and Much to Yurio's annoyance, had also been assigned to the Tropheé de France. It wasn't the fact the Minami directly blamed Yurio for the Japanese Yuri being out this season that pissed Yurio off, but at the Qualifying competitions, Minami had CONSTANTlY tailed Viktor, in an attempt to talk to the Japanese Yuri. By coincidence, Minami had taken the same flight as Yurio, and it felt to Yurio as if he would never get away from this little blond-haired fanboy. At least they were at the hotel, then Yurio would get his chance lose him.

Alouth as he opened the door, his hopes of slipping away were long forgotten, as he was greeted by a gigantic crowd of cat-eared, sign wielding, Russian speaking, Yuri's Angels. Unlike years past, Yurio didn't swear at the sight of them. Ever since the fiasco with Yakov, Any positive recognition from his country made the situation a whole lot better. Afterall, only a few people were shitheads, they just happened to be ones most often noticed.

Thankfully, the gigantic rabid crowd proved too much for Minami, and he quickly scurried away. Okaasan also looked a little overwhelmed, so Yurio expertly parted the sea of fangirls and lead his mother to safety on the other side of the French lobby. Viktor checked the three of them in, while Yurio willing let himself be devoured by the crowd.

But when he was in the mass of screaming, getting cat ears shoved on his head, girls pushing to get next to him, and flashing cell phones, Yuiro's only thoughts were on Otabek. He was competing in both of Yurio's events, but Yurio knew that he couldn't just casually walk up and talk to his boyfriend, or even acknowledge his existence in the presence of Otabek's coach, Bibigul Maksatov. Yurio was sure that she was the reason Otabek had only been able to contact him that one time through Tumblr, and really hoped that Otabek had sent him that video as a "Hey, I'm not ignoring you, but this is what they will do if you contact me", although, in his heart, Yurio knew that wasn't the case.

After he was freed from the crowd, Yurio followed Viktor and Okaasan to the elevators, (Okaasan had to stop him from punching JJ, who happened to be coming out of the elevator with his fiance, when JJ said Konichiwa. Yurio thought he deserved it. Okaasan said while what JJ did was completely uncalled for, but it still wasn't ok to punch people.)

The room itself was on the 14th floor and was extremely fancy. Yurio wasn't sure why it was called a room, there were clearly 2 separate rooms. There was a small living room, that had a mini fridge, a microwave, a TV, and a pullout couch. The walls had a wine red wallpaper on it, which held a golf leaf design. The carpet was also the same gold color, as was the ceiling. Yurio was about to inspect the bedroom when he noticed that Okaasan had also pulled out her phone and was recording his every move.

"Why do you have that thing out?!" He asked.

"It's my son's first time in France, the situation demands a video!" Okaasan fussed.

"WE are literally standing in a hotel room. Nothing nostalgic about that." Yurio sighed.

"Well, it's just a parent thing to take pictures of your kid at every given second." Okaasan reasoned. Viktor nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, Yurio. The other day Viktor was taking a video of Maria kicking. You could see it from the outside, it was really cool." The Japanese Yuri committed though Viktor's phone.

"Shut up!"

"Well Yurochka, I think you should go in the bedroom," Okaasan suggested.

"I feel like you're setting me up for something." Yuri hypnotized, as he walked toward the bedroom.

"Why would you think that?" Okaasan guessed.

"Because you're recording me and you're smiling like the Joker.

"Well just go inside the bedroom and find out," Okaasan instructed.

Yurio deep sighed and walked in. There wasn't much to look at, just closet and two beds with fluffy white blankets and pillows. But wait, there was something on one of the pillows.

It was a standard white envelope, but instead of the Hotel's name on the front, yurio's was, in fine gold cursive.

"What is the meaning of this?" Yurio asked, as he dumped his tiger-print suitcase on the ground next to the bed and picked up the note.

"See what's inside." Okaasan further instructed.

Yurio turned it over and ripped off the top. Inside were two rectangular pieces of paper, made of heavy card stock. Yurio shook them out in his hand and tried to read them.

"This is in French, Viktor what does this say?" Yurio commanded. When Viktor was younger, he had decided to learn french, not for any particular reason, but because it sounded interesting.

"What about the actual piece of paper in there?" Viktor suggested

Yurio looked in the envelope again and grabbed a folded piece of paper.

"Make sure to read it out loud!" Okaasan reminded.

"Alright then. The tickets in this envelope Grant Yuri Plisetsky and Otabek Altin to the 7:30 performance of the Hamilton World Tour, and only for tonight's performance, featuring the original cast." Yurio read, his voice getting more and more high pitched, when he was done, he stared straight at Okaasan, with what can only be described as a smile of pure joy.

"Holy shit!" he Exclaimed. "HOLY Shit! "HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT! HOW?" yurio gibbered.

"Oh, I just happened to have a friend that can speak french and is a little famous." Okaasan beamed.

"Seriously though, how?"

"The theater happened to have two cancellations, and I was coincidentally the first one to call!" Viktor exclaimed.

"But How are we going to pull this off? If Otabek every move was being watched when he was in Kazakhstan, there no way in hell they are going to just let him go for a good 3 or 4 hours unsupervised." yurio nitpicked.

"I know. And that's why I have a plan." Okaasan divulged. "Yuri helped me formulate it." Viktor handed his phone to yurio.

"Hi, Yuri." The Japanese Yuri sheepishly greeted

"What is this plan of yours?" Yurio stated, wanting to get right to the point.

"So I talked to a bunch of people, and then the plan is Yuuko and the other coaches will Strike up a conversation with Otabek's coach, and hopefully they will go to like dinner or something. To make sure you're not being followed, Christoph Giacometti and Viktor volunteered to hide in a bush for something to try and catch whoever might be following you in the act." The Japanese Yuri explained.

"I wanted to hide in the bushes and be a spy too, but your Mom originally said no." Viktor butted in.

"Only because Otabek's Coach probably wouldn't listen to me, because this is my first year ever doing anything on an international level." Okaasan pointed out.

"And when I pointed out that the coach wouldn't talk to me at all because they are clearly homophobic, she listened so now I get to hide in bushes with Chris! I'm so excited." Cheered.

"Anyway, Make sure to take lots of selfies or pictures with Minami. He said that he would post them throughout the night while you guys are at the show so that whoever it is that will try and ruin the evening, will follow the false trail. Whenever anything happens, no matter if is bad or good, make sure to text Guang Hong Ji. He's one of the fastest texters I know and is going to be basically going to be keeping the entire plan together, by texting everyone when something happens. So yurio, what do you think? Is it a good plan?" The Japanese Yuri went on.

"Seeing as you somehow got every skater competing in the Trophee de France that I don't hate with a burning passion involved with this plan, and Mother Fucking Hamilton tickets, of course, I'm in!" Yurio

Yuuko checked the time. "Then that means we only have 6 hours to get ready! That's not nearly enough time! Viktor! Out! We have some major prep work to do!" Okaasan fretted, pushing Viktor into the living room, and shutting the door, all while still wearing that crazily excited smile.


	24. Chapter 22

_6:12 pm (18:12) Hôtel Patinage Artistique_

 _October 26th, 2017_

 _Nice France_

Yurio looked at his reflection. For the past 5 hours, he had primped and preened to utter perfection. He had on the same blue suit he had worn two years prior to the Banquet when the Japanese Yuri had gotten completely wasted. He had let Okaasan put a thin layer of foundation to 'even out complexion' or something, and to cover up acne. However, he had put his foot down when it came to his hair, and wore it down.

Yurio could barely conceal his excitement. Not only did he get to see his favorite musical, but he got to spend the entire time with Otabek! Although he knew that it wouldn't be the same carefree experience it had been after Viktor and the Japanese Yuri's wedding. And even though there were a good 9 people that were dedicating their evening to make sure nothing went wrong, yurio couldn't help but feel nevus. It wasn't like the last time he went on a date someone had taken a picture that got him fired and signed Otabek up for possible weekly torture.

"Where exactly am I meeting Otabek?"

"Behind the Hôtel Côte D'or, don't worry, I plugged it into your phone so you can find it. Oh, look at the time! You need to go! Don't Forget the tickets!" Okaasan exclaimed. She took out her phone and text Guang Hong Ji, who in turn Turn texted Viktor, Cris, Minami, and Otabek (Guang Hong was the only person that could text Otabek without his coach becoming suspicious) Operation Rochambeau is go!"

 _6:20pm (18:20) Hôtel Patinage Artistique_

"Thank you all so much for helping Yuri and Otabek." Yuuko thanks, when all the coaches were gathered together.

"No problem, Minami seems to be more excited than Yurio." Kanako Odagaki, Minami's coach giggled.

"Yes, it is our pleasure." Josef Karlisek, Chris's coach confirmed.

"We should probably get going, If we want to pull this off." Xiao Yi, Guang Hong's coach, suggested, and everyone went down to the lobby, hoping they would run into Maksatov there.

As luck would have it, the first person the troop spotted was her. Bibigul Maksatov was rather tall and lean and wore a black suit with a long pencil skirt on her slender frame. Her hair was a chestnut red, and standing next to her was Otabek. With her rounded face and spindly features, Maksatov reminded Yuuko of Black Widow, who had just captured her latest prey

'Crap!' Yuuko thought, and discreetly texted this new piece of information to Guan Hong.

"Hello, Bibigul!" Karlisek called, which made her sharp pointy eyes stare at the group.

"Hello Karlisek, What do you desire?" Maksatov formally asked.

"We just on our way to dinner, would you like to join us?" Xiao Ye invited.

"Жоқ. We already have plans." Maksatov frankly turned down.

'Oh crap!'

"That's too bad." Xiao Yi sighed. "I was really looking forward to hanging out, with just coaches before the competition"

"That's not a coach," Maksatov remarked, staring directly at Yuuko.

"Excuse me?" Yuuko quavered.

"Since you clearly can't understand, let me explain further. You are not a real coach, but just a little girl playing pretend." She stated in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.

Before Yuuko could reason, however, Karlisek politely butted in: "Mrs.Nishikori is a coach, just like the rest of us."

"No, she is not. Come Otabek, we need to go." Maksatov stated and started toward the exit.

"NO!" Odagaki shouted.

"Pardon me?"

"What I mean is, wouldn't it be more fun to just ditch your skater and relax?" Odagaki explained.

"Жоқ. I will be clear because you four clearly don't understand. I would not be seen dead with any of you, and Mr.Altin cannot be trusted."

'Oh crap oh crap oh crap!'

 _6:30 pm(18:30), Outside Théâtre des Amoureux_

"Why did I volunteer to do zis?" Christophe Giacometti deep sighed, as he a Viktor were folded into two tall hedges.

"Because this is fun, and we get to help Yurio go on a date!" Viktor gleefully replied

"My leg is starting to cramp. Why can't you and Yuri just keep a lookout? And who are we even looking for anyway?" Chris reasoned.

"I don't know why Viktor brought me here either, Chris." Yuri sheepishly replied. Viktor still had his Husband on FaceTime but was holding his phone so Yuri could see the action. Or lack thereof.

"Because 8 eyes are better than 6!" Viktor happy exclaimed.

"Hey, are you making fun of my Vision Viktor?!" Yuri questioned.

"Да. But this is so exciting! I've always wanted to be a spy!"

"Keep it down or someone is going to catch us! And you still hadn't answered who it is we are looking for!" Chris shushed.

"The same person who took the original photo. Yuri said that they are most likely Russian, so keep an ear open for someone talking with a Russian accent." Viktor divulged.

"Oui" Chris agreed, and the three men went silent, before Yuri and Chris's phone buzzed.

Guang Hong: Bad news, The coach troop can't get Otabek away

Chris: What should we do?

Viktor: We can't give up yet!

Guang Hong: Wait, JJ's coaches just showed up. Their talking to Maksatov

Guang Hong: They've doing it!

Chris: Doing what?

Guang Hong: They convicted Otabek's coach to go to a wine tasting with everyone! Otabek's going to slip away when their walking

Chris: Thank god. Does Yurio know about this?

Guang Hong: No, I texted you two first.

Viktor: Yay! The mission is still on!

 _6:47 pm (18:47) Behind Hôtel Côte D'or_

Yurio scanned the surroundings, searching and scanning for Otabek. Where was he? He was supposed to be here 10 minutes ago! What is something went wrong? Yurio whipped out his phone, but nobody had rejected to text him anything. He tried to get a hold of Guang Hong, but no response. Was everyone ignoring him? What was happening? What was wrong?

"Yuri?"

Yurio looked up, and to his delight, Otabek Altin was standing in front of him.

"OTABEK!" Yurio shouted, running towards his boyfriend and giving him a big hug. "What's wrong, what happened?! Are you ok?"

"Yuri, calm down." Otabek's deep voice radiated.

"Sorry. I got your message you sent back in July." Yurio clarified.

"Good, you figured out it was me." Otabeck echoed.

"Why did you send me that video? Did they actually do that to you?"

"Жоқ"

"Thank fucking god!"

"But as soon as I got home, Maksatov met me at the airport. Whoever took the picture that got you fired also sent it to her. She didn't fire me but was this close. So I lied and told her that I don't want to, and you had manipulated. I'm really sorry, but It was the only way I could think of that wouldn't make them try and hurt you." Otabek divulged.

"I'm not upset."

"Good. but she turned into a total control freak. She hacked into all of my accounts and always checked what I was doing and posting because she didn't trust. And if she wasn't combing through my internet history, then she was literally at my side. Back in March, I tried to use a friend's phone to let you know what was going on, but I got caught. She threatened to send me to Conversion therapy, and I'm still shocked I was able to conceive her not too. However, She made me move in with her" Otabeck explained, making a fist.

"How did you send the tumbler messages then?" Yurio questioned.

"Maksatov was sick, and there was a terrible storm, so her power went out. I was able to get to the only library with power. I checked your social media and saw that you had gotten into Hamilton. I ran your email through a site that tells you what accounts that email has. I saw you had the tumbler, and I knew that was the best way to contact you."

"So you made ElizaSchuyler103297 and sent me that message." Yurio reiterated.

"Yes. I didn't want to stop talking, I wanted to try and help you understand, but Maksatov texted me, and I quickly erased the history so it looked like I had never been there, grabbed a random book, and went back to her place."

"You listened to the entire soundtrack just because I liked it?"

"Иә. I regret nothing. Hamilton's amazing."

"We should get going to the theater then."

"Great idea."

The boyfriends, however, did not move. They both wanted to kiss the other so badly, but they couldn't, not until they got the OK from Viktor and Chris, that whoever had taken the picture from their last kiss had been caught and wasn't going to pull the same thing again. But they both knew that day probably want today.


	25. Chapter 23

_7:48 pm(19:48), Établissement vinicole_

"I'm going to ask you one more time. WHERE IS OTABEK ALTIN!" Maksatov screamed. The troop of coaches was only able to distract her long enough for Otabek to sneak away and to get a seat.

"And I'll tell you again, I don't know," Karlisek replied, keeping perfectly calm.

"He left his phone in your purse, he can't be far." Odagaki reasoned.

"One of you knows! TELL ME! What about you, you've been feverishly texting the entire time." Maksutov's black widow eyes focused on Yuuko.

"I'm trying to find him, honest." Yukko innocently replied. And she was not lying, She was keeping up with Otabek and Yuri's every move. And know knowing about Maksatov's stalker tendencies, she wasn;t just in the mood to keep her distracted, Yuuko wanted her as far away from Otabek as humanly possible. The performance had started 15 minutes ago, so she was mostly making sure everything was going fine on Viktor, Chris, and Minami's part. Although things weren't going very well. Someone had cornered Minami, and he had fled, but wouldn't tell anyone who the person was. Viktor suspected that whoever had done it was the same mystery who had taken the kiss photo.

"Then where is he! Are you even trying girl!"

"Stay calm Mrs.Nishigori" Xiao Yi whispered. But it was getting harder and Harder to Yuuko to not but this stupid black widow in her place.

"Why do you even want to find him so badly? Is there a problem with letting him have fun?" JJ's mom questioned. Yuuko couldn't figure out for the life of her whether the two of them were in on the plan, or for were completely oblivious and wanted to hang out with them.

"You don't understand now, do you! He told me, he promised me he was passed this!" She grumbled.

"Past what?" JJ's dad asked.

"This stupid homosexual face!"

A dead silence fell over the group. If looks could injure, Yuuko would be charged with the murder of squishing this stupid spider. The other coaches would be charged with assault.

"What makes you think that?" Karlisek asked, finding it harder to calm to keep straight face.

"I have to be with him constantly otherwise all he does is try and contact Yuri Plisetsky!" She yelled. Yuuko started to make angry fists to keep calm. "I swear to god, I am going to get this zapped out of him, he can't be trusted." The coach muttered under her breath.

"Oh dear, here we go." Odagaki, who happened to be Yuuko's roommate in college, and one was one the few people who had witnessed her in full fury mode, sighed and put her head in her hands.

"Zapp it out of him? ZAPP IT OUT OF HIM! ARE YOU KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW!?"

"Your parents clearly never taught you the dangers of homosexuality."

"To get one thing right, I am not a little girl! And more importantly, how dare you to insult my son, your student, and every LGBTQ person on the planet! There is nothing wrong with homosexuality. But what is wrong is your blatant bigotry!" Yukko firmly exclaimed, raising her voice, but not shouting.

"And where would your son happen to be? If you don't tell me, I will personally see to it that both Yuri and Otabek will pay for their behavior!!" An evil smile spread across Yuuko's face.

"Seeing a musical. With his BOYFRIEND. And if you want to find him, you'll have to wait until 10:00, when the show is over. My parents did teach me that it's rude to interrupt a show."

Maksatov shook with fury, and Yuuko knew she had won this battle. Yurio and Otabek were safe. Not just until 10:00, but for a long time. Maksatov had made an international threat, in front of several witnesses, which meant The International Skating Union had reason to start an investigation, which would keep Otabek safe from the black widows grasp.

 _8:40p pm(20:30), Outside Théâtre des Amoureux_

"Intermission is going to end in 5 minutes, if the person is going to try and get a picture then they're going to go in soon," Viktor commanded. "Keep your eyes and ears open."

"Oui Captain."

Chris, Yuri, and Viktor watched the doors to the Theater in complete silence, except for a few rustled leaves from Chris.

"Wait! Viktor raise me higher!" Yuri exclaimed. Viktor exclaimed. "Who's that figure in a gray hoodie?"

Chris and Viktor looked at each other, nodded it, and Jumped out of the bush, screaming "BOO!"

The hooded person understandably shirked, jumped about two in the air, and their hood flew back to reveal Gorgi Popovich.

"Oh, Hi Georgi! How are you?"

"Not Well! What are you doing in there?" Goergi shirked in Russian. "Never mind, I need to go."

"Go where? You're not in the TRophee de France." Chris inquired.

"To see the show, of course." Georgi nervously replied.

"Oh cool! It's your favorite right, Ivan Vsevolozhsky Sleeping Beauty?"

"Да."

"But the-" Yuri started before Viktor muted his phone.

"Cool. Chris and I are hiding the bushes because someone took a picture of my brother and his boyfriend on a date back in February. They sent the picture to Yakov, and yurio got fired from the Russian Skating association. Want to join us?" Viktor happy invited.

"Het. I want to see the ballet."

"Then why are you dressed in clothes that look like you're sneaking around." Chris inquired.

"Because, I, um" Georgi studded.

"Where sneaking around trying to get pictures of Otabek and Yurio so they could get in even more trouble." Viktor finished.

"I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Te\hen show us the pictures on your phone. Then we will believe you." Chris commanded.

"FINE! I took the picture of Otabek and Yuri! But it was only because-" Georgii confessed. Viktor stepped out of the bush and got right in his face.

"I don't want to hear your excuse. And to be perfectly honest, I'm not upset with you, I think Yurio coming to Japan was the best thing for him. But if you EVER pull ANYTHING like that again, you better believe that we will be after you." Viktor warned, and getting the message, Georgi ran off into the night, never to take another picture ever again.

 _10:12 pm (22:00) Baie des Anges_

Yurio felt as if he was walking on air. Not only had he gotten to see MOTHER FUCKING HAMILTON, Okassan had gotten Otabek's freedom, and best of all, Viktor, Chris, and the Japanese Yuri had figured out who had taken the original kiss photo, so the couple was free to do whatever they like. Taking advantage of this, Otabek and Yurio were walking back to the hotel hand in hand. His heart was racing, and not just because he had seen LIN MANUEL MIRANDA WITH HIS OWN TWO EYES!!!

"That was the best thing I've ever done," Otabek commented.

"Me too," Yurio replied.

More happy silence.

"And you definitely weren't getting super emotional during Stay alive reprise, more so than when Alexander went," Otabek noted.

"ALEXANDER AND LITERALLY FUCKED UP, PHILIP DID NOTHING WRONG AND WAS TRYING TO SAVE HIS FATHER'S LAST SHRED OF DIGNITY!" Yurio screamed.

"I agree completely. It was so much more emotional seeing it person than just listing." Otabek echoed

"Exactly. The feels train made a complete 2 and a half hour stop" Yurio declared.

They continued to walk, hand in hand. The ocean reflected the clear night sky, a million stars shining as if they knew about the liberation.

"I don't want to go back to the hotel," Otabek confessed.

"Me neither. It feels just like after the wedding." Yurio examined.

"Maybe we should try again," Otabek suggested.

"Maybe we should."

And with that, the two young adults grabbed each other's other hand and kissed again. But this time, the only repercussions of their actions was a gold medal for Yurio, a silver medal for Otabek, and a Bronze medal for Guang Hong Ji.


	26. Chapter 24

_8:28 am, Yu-Topia Inn_

 _Friday, November 24th, 2017_

 _Hasetsu Japan, Week 40_

"Good morning Yuri! Good morning Masha!: Viktor cheerfully whispered, and like how he did every morning giving me a soft kiss, then gave another to Maria.

"Good morning Viktor." I smile.

"I'm so excited! Only have to wait 4 days, 7 hours, and 2 minutes until Masha is born!" Viktor cheered, getting out of bed and skipping around the room, making me giggle.

Our room is arranged quite differently from when we first got married. Instead of the bed being in the very center of the wall with the large window, Viktor, Takeshi, Yuuko, and Mari pushed it over to the left side. (And no, I was not in the bed at the time, Viktor wouldn't let me. Instead, I camped out on the sofa.) And on the left side of the wall with the large window, was Maria's crib. It was a light wood with a smooth white finish, and the mattress inside had fitted sheet that had a beautiful pattern of a sunlit pond, with Koi fish swimming inside. I can't wait to put Maria in her Koi onesie and place her in the crib. I just can't wait for her to be here. And while I know Viktor says that she is already here, and while he is technically correct, but I can tell that having her inside of me isn't going to be the same having her in my arms. I can barely wait!

"I can barely believe were so close." I astonished. "It feels like just found out about her yesterday, yet at the same time, it feels like we've been waiting for all eternity."

"I know what you mean. It must be harder for you though, after all, you've barely left this room for months."

"Yeah, I'm also definitely looking forward to a change of scenery." I giggle. It's crazy because I haven't really gotten too bored staying in bed all this time. Maybe its because that's what is needed to keep Maria safe. But trust me, I will have no trouble adjusting to being able to get out of bed. "What time do you and Yurio have to leave?"

"We need to catch the 11:00 o'clock train, to get there at 12:00, so we have plenty of time to get ready for the competition, which will start at 1:00 (13:00), so we still have a few hours. It's great that the NHK is in Fukuoka this year because if for some reason, Masha decides to come early, I will be there faster than you can say По времени поездов!"

"Yeah, it is." I nervously giggle. In my heart though, I know that if Maria did decide to come during a competition, There is no way Viktor could possibly make it in time to be in the OR with me, so I really hope that if she does decide to come a little early, then she'll announce it when Viktor ISN'T an hour away. But from want I can tell, she's not coming this morning.

 _10:52, Hasetsu Station_

 _Hasetsu Japan_

"Hi, Yurio!" Etsuko called. By coincidence, Etsuko and her Mom were taking the same train Yurio, Okaasan, and Viktor.

"Hey, Etsuko! Are you excited?"

"YEAH! I でも、群衆がいる場合には too lould. Mommy 群衆は way more lould よりもこのイベントの方がいいだろう。 しかし、私はちょっと神経質で、神経質ではありません。 私も置く kitty ears 常に叫んでいた the name your mommy calls you。." Etsuko divulged.

"Yurochka?"

"Yeah! That's was it!"

"Oh, Etsuko, in the rink, don't go close to me. I like you, but the Yuri's angles are really loud, and you don't like that." Yurio warned, trying not to sound like a total jerk, but his limited Japnese was making that rather difficult.

"They looked scary. But I ちょっと wanna be a Kitty girl too, because mommy said that they are really big fans of you, and I am a big fan of you too." Etsuko confessed.

"Спасибо! You can be part of Yuri's Angels, I would like a not crazy one. I can get a real pair of ears for you." Yurio offered.

"Really!?"

"It would be easy. Those girls worship me."

"Oh hey, wanna see the shirts I made for me and Mommy to wear? Because it's coldアウトI 本当に多くのターンを取ることはありません mommy said this was もう、特別な機会."

"Of course!"

Etsuko took off her jacket, and revealed a long sleeve t-shirt, completely painted in a lighter version of the Russian-Pan flag she had made for Yurio back in February. In the center, however, was a Red dot, to symbolize the Japanese flag, and written around it were the words, Good Luck Yuri!!! In both Japanese and Russian.

And for the first time, seeing himself associated with Japan didn't feel like a punch in the gut, not that Yurio could figure out why. Even Though it was his 5th time competing for Japan, he still felt like a traitor, although he knew that the real traitor was Georgi and Yakov, who was also competing. Yurio knew it was going to take all of the self-restraint he had to NOT punch those assholes in the face. But he would get his revenge. He didn't just want to place a head of Georgi, he wanted that asshole off of the podium, not just anywhere off the podium, but last place, Humiliating Yakov to the end of the earth.

Speaking of asshole coaches, he was happy to report that the ISU had found Otabek a new coach. Unlike his old one, Guldana Niyazov was kind, caring, and most importantly not a gigantic bigot. And when they arrived, Okaasan had not waited a second gone over to her to Make sure that she didn't one-bit act in the way the 'Black widow' had. Otabek was much happier as well, and the two boyfriends were able to keep in daily touch.

 _11:52, Fukuoka Official Ice Rink_

 _Fukuoka Japan_

"Hey, Viktor!" Phichit called.

"Hello, Phichit! How are you?"

"I'm doing great! How's Yuri? The baby is coming any day now, right?" Phichit inquired.

"I'm right here Phichit!" Yuri called form FaceTime"

"Sweet! Hi, Yuri!"

"Hi, Phichit! The plan is Maria's coming on the 28th, around 3:30 (15:30)"

"Congratulations! I was going to give this to her on her actual birthday, like Leo and everyone else competing, but I couldn't wait any longer!." Phichit announced, hanging Viktor a purple and gold glitter gift bag.

"Phichit! You didn't have to do that!" Viktor chimed.

"Of course I did! My best friends are having a baby, how could I not get her at least something!" Phichit insisted.

"AWww, Wait, what's the word? sorry I've been kinda forgetful lately!" Yuri tanked through Viktor's phone before Viktor could respond.

"ขอขอบคุณ(thank you)?" Phichit suggested.

"Yea! ขอขอบคุณ!" Yuri thanked, immediately forgetting the Thai word again.

"No problem! Open it! You're going to love it!" He exclaimed.

"If you insist." Viktor giggled, and sat down. Phichit covertly held Viktor's phone so Yuri could have a good look. Viktor pulled off the royal red tissue paper. Inside was a pale pink stuffed elephant, that was 30 centimeters in length. For a face, they had 2 embroidered black circles, and around their neck, was a pink Ribbon bow, that was rosier than the rest of the elephant's body.

"AWWWW Phichit! That's adorable! Thank you so much! Maira is going to love it!!!" Yuri cried.

"You're welcome! Her name is Elly. That is for now, and there something else in there for when she gets a little older." Phichit proclaimed, smiling almost was wide as Viktor and Yuri.

Viktor put Elly in his lap, and dug through the bag again, and pulled out a plastic toy cell phone. It was mostly white but had royal blue outer corners and vibrant green accent marks. Viktor's favorite part, however, and the reason it had caught Phichit's eye, was it had a soft, baby friendly mirror on the 'screen. The packaging said ทารกแรกเกิดของทารก!.

"It's perfect!" Viktor gushed, while the cuteness overload made Yuri squeal.

"Viktor Give Phichit a hug for me! Phichit I love you so much you are amazing (I love you so much thank you!!!" Yuri squailed, happy ears sting to stream down his face.

Viktor put Elly and the cell phone back in the bag and allowed Yui's command.

"Thank you again, Phichit."

"Really, it's no problem! Congratulations again!" Phichit congratulated, before walking a way to warm up.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the first skater, Jacob Bähr of Germany, is about to take the ice. He took 5th at the Cup of China, and his hopes to follow in the footsteps of Yuri Plisetski, and qualify for the GRand Prix final in his first year at the senior division." Hisashi Morooka, enthusiastically announced about an hour later, his energetic voice booming over the loudspeakers.

"It's kinda strange, hearing the announcements thought the rink and seeing it on TV at the same time," Yuri commented. Like for the last 2 competitions, the Katsuki family and the rest of the Nishikori's had all gathered in Viktor and Yuri's bedroom (bringing in a smaller TV that Mari had found when she was cleaning out the attic a few months back) to watch the competition.

"I bet it is. I miss you two so much."

"Well on the bright side, I'm only an hour away this time, instead of halfway across the world." Yuri nervously giggled.

"Yuri, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, nothing, I've just been having this strange feeling that I can't quite explain." Yuri divulged.

"Do you want me to come back? No one would be upset if I did." Viktor offered.

"No, no it's fine. Yurio needs you." Yuri assured.

But just as Bähr's music, some song from the Movie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, started, Viktor saw Yuri's face, for only a moment scrunch up, then transform into one of pure fear. Viktor couldn't hear the shrill of the music in the background, or disappointed cheer when Bähr fell after attempting a quad Axel. All he heard was his heart pounding.

"Yuri?! Yuri, what's working? What's happening? Is Masha ok? Wait is she-"

Looking to petrified to speak, Yuri slowly nodded his head, and like a flash, Viktor bolted out of the rink like a graceful deer that had been caught in the headlights, running faster than he had ever run before, racing the clock.


	27. Chapter 25

At 1:23, Friday, November 24th, 2017, Viktor Nikiforov started to silently cry. He started crying harder than he had ever cried before. Viktor Nikiforov, father, husband, and figure skating legend had officially missed the birth of his Daughter, Maria Mai Nikiforova, who he affectionately called Masha.

'Why didn't I just stay home?' Viktor asked himself, tears streaming down his face. 'I should have known it was too risky. Why did I think I could possibly make it in time!'

"Sir? Are you ok? What's wrong?" A female-sounding voice asked. Viktor half-snapped out of his trance and looked up, to see a teenage girl. Her long purple hair was in a high ponytail, and she had on a pale yellow shirt and jeans with a daisy pattern on them.

"My husband with extreme anxiety is in emergency surgery and I missed my daughter's birth! How could I be ok?!" Viktor shouted.

"So your husband is having a C-section?" she clarified.

"Да. I should have known that she was coming today, I should have known!" Viktor cried.

"So was he due today? Did you just get the call?" The girl inquired.

"Het. The c-section was scheduled for November 28th, 20:17 at 3:30 pm!(15:30). But Yuri went into labor early, and I was on FaceTime with him when it started, but no phones are allowed in the Operating room!" Viktor sobbed. To Viktor, the guilt felt like something was layering heavy blanket after heavy blanket on his shoulders, making it nearly impossible to move and tell what was going on around him.

"Hey, it's ok." The teenage girl consoled

"No, it's not! And there's nothing I can do!"

"Exactly. You are trying your best, you can't control how fast the train goes. And I can tell, you're an amazing Dad and Husband." She reasoned.

"How?" Viktor sniffled. "I missed Masha's birth! And now everyone thinks I don't care about her or Yuri!"

"Because you're so upset. Nobody who you in this state would ever question your love for your husband and daughter. I know I certainly don't." The girl explained.

"Thank you so much." Viktor thanked, wiping the tears from his eyes. And while this girls pep talk didn't take away all of the guilt, it definitely took off one of the heavy blankets.

"Now approaching, Ikisan Satiation." A robotic voice stated over the loudspeaker.

"This is my stop. Congratulations and good luck. I hope everything works out!" The teen called, exiting the train.

Viktor bolted off the train, dashed down to street to the hospital, flew down the hallway, and only slowed down when he heard the sweet, sweet sound of his husband, Yuri Nikiforov, coming from room 5-42

"You are the luckiest baby in the whole world, Maira. You know why? Your Papa is the nicest, kindest, most caring person I have ever met. Even before you could even hear, he always greeted you in the morning. And before we knew your name, he would call you Baby Nikiforova. Ever since we've had pictures of you, he's held them as his cell phone home screen and lock screen, and if he ever wanted to get anything done on his phone, it would take him an extra minute, because he was always admiring you. Every day he showed how much he loved and cared for you, I can't wait for you to meet him."

Viktor knocked on the door and could feel Yuri's smile.

"'And you don't have to wait any longer." Yuri smiled. Viktor opened the door. He didn't notice the white walls of the hospital room or the large window that gave a breathtaking view of Fukuoka. All he noticed was the breathtaking view right in front of him. Yuri was sitting, upright, and in his arms was the most beautiful girl on the face of the planet. Viktor walked over to Yuri's bedside, and without even needing to say anything, Yuri handed Maria to Viktor.

Maria's big blue and teal eyes stared up at her Papa. They were perfect, beautiful, well shaped, and marched Viktor's exactly. Surrounding those beautiful oceans, was a pale head, shaped in a perfect oval. Growing out of her amazingly beautifully perfect head was long, silky black hair, the most opaque Dr.Tsuchiya, and all the nurses had ever seen. Everything about her was perfect, and the most beautiful thing Viktor and Yuri had ever seen.

And as Viktor held his newborn daughter in his arms, she stared directly at him, and at the same time, the two Nikiforovs gave each other the same heart-shaped smile. And that smile, that beautiful, adorable, gorgeous, perfect smile opened up a whole new door.

The amount of agape love washed over Viktor like a wave. This is what Agape felt like. Viktor felt slightly ashamed, after all, how could he have given Yuro such a hard time about finding out what Agape meant to him when Viktor himself had no idea? But now he did, Viktor absolutely understood what agape love meant. And anyway what was so good about figure skating? It was just slipping around on cold water, with the hope of maybe winning a lump of metal. The last 28years of Viktor's life seemed so small, so insignificant compared to right now, compared to the life of his daughter, Mahsa Nikiforova. She had already changed the world, and she wants even an hour old. It was time to start a new chapter, time to start the world anew through the eyes of this little goddess.

 _~End of Part 1~_

Certificate of Birth:

Name: Maria Mai Nikiforova

Parents: Yuri Nikiforov and Viktor Nikiforov

Carrier: Yuri Nikiforov

Date of birth:November 24th, 2017

Time of birth: 1:23pm (13:23)

Place of birth: Hasetsu Maternity Clinic

Ob/Gyn: Haruka Tsuchiya

Weight: 3.5 kg

Length: 51 cm

Blood type: O


	28. Chapter 26

Hi, everyone and welcome to Part 2 of On Love: Agape! WE have a new cover, assembled by the AMAZING /p/9gcnj, which contains not only a picture of Viktor and Yuri but multiple pictures of Maria/Masha that I photoshopped! I just wanted to let you all know that starting today, I am going to be posting the new chapter of this fic on Sunday, like a TV show. my reason for doing this is to try and bring some consistency to my uploading schedule (which is rather sporadic), and in like a week or two I will be starting school, so I will have NO time. But don't worry, I will try my very best to dutifully update this fic because I know you all love it! Thank you so so so so so so so so so much for reading, and without Further ado, On Love: Agape!!! Part 2!!!!

"Wait, Yurio, you haven't had a turn yet!" Yuri observed. After the competition, Yurio, Yuuko, Otabek, Phichit, and Mila had all come to the clinic, which brought the total number of people in the room from 6 to 11, making Viktor feel rather grateful that his family was in a larger room. He was sitting in bed next to Yuri, unable to take his eyes off of Masha, who was in Yuri's arms.

She was alert and awake, but for the most part, wasn't too fussy. Her eyes were open wide and seem to be constantly moving around the room, trying to take in everything at once. Viktor wasn't sure how anyone could claim that their baby was the best, they had clearly never met Masha. She wasn't swaddled in the hot pink blanket, the nurses had given Viktor and Yuri the green light to change her into one of the outfits they had bought all those months before. She currently was wearing her pink kitten ensemble, minus the headband. The nurse had not given the green light for that yet.

"I don't want a turn," Yurio stated in Russian, then repeated the phrase in English so everyone else could understand. Viktor had specifically asked him to speak in Russian when Masha was in the room, so she would be able to learn it.

"Of course you do! Everyone like holding babies!" Phichit exclaimed. He had held Maira for 10 minutes and 18 seconds. Viktor was keeping track.

"I don't," Yurio confirmed, crossing his arms. He wasn't all that into babies, after all, they didn't do much.

"Come on, have you ever actually held one before?" Mila questioned. She had held Maira for a good 7 minutes and 43 seconds.

"No, and I don't want to!" Yurio maintained.

"Trust me, you'll love it!" Viktor encouraged.

"It's actually pretty cool. Even I did it, Yuri." Otabek added. He had only held Masha for 4 minutes and 27 seconds.

"Hamilton would do it." Yuuko, who had held Masha for 8 minutes and 27 seconds, convinced.

"Fine." Yurio accepted, only because he knew nobody would leave him alone until he sucked it up and held Masha.

"I knew you would come around! Now sit down, Yuri, where's that pillow we were using earlier when we were feeding her?" Viktor instructed

"I think it rolled underneath the bed." Yuri speculated, looking around for it.

'I got it!" Phichit called, grabbing a bean shaped white pillow and handing it to Yuuko. When yurio beguilingly sat, she placed it in his lap.

"What the heck is this for? And why do I have to sit down, nobody else did?" yurio questioned.

"Just safety precautions." Viktor. He took Masha, beautiful Masha, and placed her in Yurio's arms. "Make sure to support her head!" He reminded. Yuuko took out her phone and started recording.

Yuri felt the most awkward and fidgety he ever had. His arms felt like they were being squished, but he was too nervous to move them, not wanting to mess her up. Masha looked straight up at him, yawned, and closed her eyes.

"Viktor, what is she doing? Is she supposed to be doing that? Did I break it!?" yurio packed.

"Awww, you put her to sleep!" Yuri's mom observed. She had held Masha for 15 minutes and 29 seconds. Mari was the only one who actually got a chance to hold Mahsa before Viktor came. In fact, at Yuri's request, she had been in the OR with Yuri, so she was the second person ever to hold Masha.

"No, but seriously, is that supposed to happen?" yurio clarified.

"Yuri, calm down. It's a useful skill. Make sure to remember that you two!" Mila teased.

And as perplexed and panicked and nervous and fidgety as Yurio was, he was unable to take his eyes off of her. He suddenly remembered one of the conversations he had had with Etsuko when she taught him the Japnese word for uncle, 叔父さん/おじさん/Ojisan. She had described an Uncle as "Your mommy or daddies brother who does really cool stuff." And It dawned on Yurio that as a person, Maira was a blank slate and whether for better or worse, he was going to help shape who she would become. Would he be like his Biological mother, and let his own anger and suffering project onto her, making her emotionally distant and fearful? Or would he be like Grandpa, Okaasan, Otousan, and everyone else he met, and be guided by some unknown force to help rise Masha up, helping her be the best she could be? And at that moment, Yurio made a silent promise to himself, that he would try his very hardest to be the best Uncle this world had ever seen.

"Yurio, are you ok?" Otabek asked.

""Huh?"

"You were in some kind of a trance." Otabek pointed out.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just thinking," Yuri responded, and after 5 minutes and 37 seconds Viktor tried to take Masha. "HEY! I wasn't done!"

Mila, Mari, and Phichit tired to hold in laughter but failed.

"And you said you didn't want a turn!" Mari laughed.

"That was before, right now, I want a longer turn." Yurio defended.

"What ever you say, дядя!" Mila teased, trying to insult Yurio, but it didn't work in the Sligist. After all, it was true.

"Wait, you guys are laughing at Yurio? I was laughing at Masha's sudden intake of Yurio's personality! Look at her right hand!" Phichit pointed out.

Everyone looked, and Masha's right hand had somehow, without anyone noticing, Masha was placed against Yurio's arm with the middle finger sticking out. At that, the entire room erupted into tears of laughter, and the deafening roar was enough to wake up Masha and call a nurse into the room, to check and see if everything was ok. But when Phichit showed her the glorious picture that he had taken, which had Yurio giving a completely out of character look of love to his niece, and Masha with her middle finger out, the Nurse also burst out laughing. Later that night, Phichit posted it, and it went more viral than all of the official pictures Yuri and Viktor posted combined.


	29. Chapter 27

_10:33 am, November 27th_

 _Outside Yu-topia Inn, Hasetu, Japan_

"Makka!" Viktor cheered, as he saw his beloved poodle run out the door to greet him. Viktor hadn't seen Makkah in 3 whole days, he had stayed at the hospital with Yuri and Masha and was extra excited to show not just his dog, but everyone, the beautiful creation that was his newborn daughter. Viktor was holding onto Yuri's right hand, helping him stay stable without making you feel like it was necessary. Yuri's dad was holding Masha, and Viktor trusted him completely, but still couldn't help looking back at her, to make sure that nothing was wrong.

Makka ran out the front door, ignoring all attempts from Mari and Yuri's mother to slow him down, making a mad dash towards Viktor and Yuri, but stopped when he realized that Yuri was A.standing up, and B had a sustainably flatter stomach than the last time he had seen him. Viktor grinned, kneeled down to him, and scratched him behind the ears. Makka always loved when Viktor did that.

"Don't worry, Makkachin, Yuri is perfectly alright," Viktor explained. "Masha's outside of him instead of inside. Would you like to meet her?" Makka barked in recognition. Viktor turned to get Masha from Yuri's dad.

"Uh, Viktor? Maybe we should wait until we get inside?" Yuri reminded.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry, Yuri." Viktor apologized, and they continued their way inside, Makkachin right at Viktor's other side. And of course, the second they got inside, Yuri took a seat on the red cushioned bench in the lobby. After making sure his husband was ok, Viktor took Masha back into his arms, then bent down again to show her Makkachin.

Masha's big blue eyes stared directly at Makka's curly brown hair, and Makka's black ones stared right back in complete silence. About 30 seconds later, Makka decided that he liked this new little person, and gave Masha a very small kiss, which was followed by a chorus of awws.

"That was the cutting thing I have ever seen!" Mari squealed. "Was anyone recording that?"

"Sorry dear, I didn't know you wanted me too." Yuri's mother apologized.

"If that boy with the phone was here, then it would have gone on tape." Yuri's father giggled. "Speaking of pictures, do you boys like the announcement we put on the desk,?"

"Oh, this one? Sorry, I didn't see it." Yuri confirmed, after spinning around. He reached up and grabbed it, then read it aloud for everyone else. "Hello! My name is Maria Nikiforova, and as you can tell by my picture u above, I am very cute! I was just born on Friday, November 24ht, 2017, so please excuse me if I wake up in the middle of the night and get a little loud. My grandparents put special sound proofing pads on the walls of my room, so It shouldn't bother you too much. Thank you for understanding and have a nice stay!"

"That's really smart to have that up," Mari commented.

"She was a little loud in the hospital." Yuri agreed. "Oh Viktor, 防音 means soundproofing

"Спасибо!" Viktor thanked. Even though Viktor had lived in Hasestu for close to years, he still didn't know everything in Japanese, and he was always happy to learn. "That picture of Masha is very cute."

The picture that Yuri's parents had chosen for the announcement was from the day Masha was born, she hadn't even been taken out of the pink blanket yet. Viktor remembered the month well, it was about 20 minutes after he had come, and she had just inside having her first bottle ever. Her beautiful face was staring right up at the camera, and Viktor made a quick mental note to use it as his lock screen. Thankfully for him, Yuri's mother helped Yuri, up, and Viktor was now given the best job in the world, to carry Masha to her new bed room, and show her everything along the way.


	30. Chapter 28

**Hey everyone! Thank you so much for putting up with me!!! If you want to, you can take [this /p/idb9wx] to decide how I post the chapters from now on. Also if my quality has gone down, I'm really sorry, it definitely will improve by next chapter. Thanks again for reading!!!**

 _January 7th, 2018_

 _6:39am_

"Yuri, are you sure you want me to go? What if something happens, and Mahsa gets sick for you get sick or you both get sick or the roof caves in and aliens take over the world or-" Viktor reasoned. The both of us are standing at Maria's crib, watching over her, making sure she's breathing. The funny thing is, she's never ever still. When she's awake, she's squirming and wiggling. And when she's asleep, like right now, her arms and legs slowly move back and forth, her tiny perfect hands make fists and the release. Once she starts to crawl, we're going to be toast.

"Viktor, it's fine. Maria's a month old, and Yurio's been more than patient. It's time." I confirmed. The last 6 weeks have been a blur of tears, bliss, and interrupted sleep. It's incredible, if you think about it, that someone can scream and cry for 5 hours straight, all because said person has a cold they caught from the recent GPF gold mentalist. It's also incredible that a person can function off of less than 4 hours of uninterrupted sleep. However, as much as Viktor and I wouldn't trade fatherhood for anything, it's time for Viktor to go back to coaching.

Even before Maria was conceived, I knew in my heart that I was ready to retire. Viktor and I talked it over together, and Originally, we were going to bring Maria to the rink, so we didn't have to be separated. But Yurio said that he wouldn't be ok with that until she wouldn't majority interrupt anything. Seeing as the rink was as much His space at it was Viktor's, we agreed to those terms, but before she was ready to do that, I am going to stay home with her whole time Viktor's at work, because I was already so close to retirement before I got pregnant. Although I can tell that it breaks Viktor's heart to have to leave her

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. And it's only a 10-minute walk, so if Maria's feeling alright, we might stop by. Yurio said that was ok."

"Really?!"

"If Maria's feeling up to it."

"Then I'll see you two later!" Viktor cheered, walking out of the door.

And of course, two moments after Viktor is officially out of the Inn, Maira awoke.

 _One Week later_

 _5:37pm (17:37)_

Viktor walked through the door, I immediately hand Maria out to him, we look at each other, and at the exact same time say;

"This isn't working." We had tried for a week, but Without Viktor, everything seems more chaotic, and my feelings of panic rubs off on Maria. So every day it was the same routine, Viktor leaves, Maira wakes up, she gets fussy until I play her the sleeping beauty (For reasons I will never know or understand, at the GPF, Georgi had left a DVD of Disney Movie, Sleeping beauty, and a CD of its soundtrack, in Yurio's locker. And a days after Masha came one from the hospital, Viktor listened to the CD and watched the DVD "to make sure there weren't any nasty surprises", because apparently there was also a note that went along with the CD and DVD that Viktor crumpled up and threw away the second he read, not telling me what the note actually said. There wasn't, so when Maria had her cold, out of desperation, we played the CD for her, and it was finally the thing that calmed her down. I personally think the reason she likes it so much is because it's in Russian, which is all Viktor ever talks in when she is preset.), naps, we go see Viktor, where she turns back into her calm, happy self, then as we leave, she banshee screams, and then it takes me hours to semi-calm her town, but she only completely chills out when Viktor is around.

"We need to figure out a different plan, but I have no idea what," I astonish.

"Дa. WE can't wait until she's older for her to come to the rink. But at the same time, I don't want to completely abandon Yurio. I promised him that Maira wouldn't change anything." Viktor remarks.

"That's a stupid thing to promise," I mention

"What? I don't think I've ever heard you say stupid." Viktor states, a bit confused.

"I'm just saying that everyone, even Yurio, knows nothing is the same after a baby comes," I explain.

"I know you're right, I just have no clue how to fix this. Yurio needs a coach." Viktor echoes

We both sit on the bed, Maria in Viktor's arms, completely burnt out of ideas. Dr.Tsuchiya cleared me to be able to go back to work. In a perfect world, we would just completely swap places, but there is no way on earth I could ever be a coach, it's just not me. And a giant buzz shakes the room.

"Sorry, my phone is still connected to the Bluetooth speaker I was using to play the music for Maria." I apologize. I disconnect my phone and see a text from Yuuko.

Yuuko: Let me guess, you and Viktor are trying to figure out a schedule that will let Viktor stay home with Maria.

Me: I'm not even going to ask how you knew we were just talking about that

Yuuko: Just instincts. And I have an Idea.

Me: Please tell.

Yuuko: I think that we could do a 3-way job switch. I became Yurochka's coach, Viktor stays at home with Maria, and you take my current job as rink manager.

Me: What does Yurio say about all this.

Yuuko: He wants it to start tomorrow.

Me: let me see what Viktor thinks.

I show Viktor the text messages Yuuko sent me, and I swear, the only time I've seen his face light up to much was when he saw Maria for the first time. He's too happy to speak, all he can do is nod.

Me: Viktor loves that idea. What time do you want me to come in

Yuuko: 6:30 am if that would be too much trouble

Me: See you then! Yuuko I can't thank you enough

Yuuko: your welcome ;)


	31. Chapter 29

_January 24th,2018_

 _5:16pm (17:16)_

Maria lied in her crib, and was doing some strange motion that neither of her parents could absolutely figure out. Normal when she was lying down, she would do little stretches or kicks, and seemed to be moving just for the sake of it. Today however, she kept moving just her left shoulder, and seemed to be trying to touch her right shoulder with it. Viktor had watched her do it for hours, and there was a look of determination on her face, as if she was trying to do something, and was thisclose to getting it done. When Yui had gotten home from his job at Ice Castle, he joined Viktor at Maria's crib side and the two dads watched their daughter repeat the same motion for a good 15 minutes.

"What do you think she's doing?" Yuri asked Viktor.

"I think she's trying to roll over. One time she was able to get enough force in her elbow to slights tilt, and she seemed really happy with herself when she did." Viktor hypoizised.

"Viktor she's two months old. She's not trying to roll over." Yuri corrected.

"She is!" Viktor insisted.

"Babies roll over at 4 months." yuri asserted.

"Who do you trust, some random parenting site or your husband who has been watching her try and roll over all day." Viktor reasoned.

"I don't think it's physically possible for her to roll over just using her shoulder." Yuri stated.

"Are you saying that Masha isn't smart enough to realize that she needs to move her shoulder back to the left before thrusting it forward and do the same motion with her knee at the exact same time?" viktor accused yuri, while sneaking in a helpful hint for mahsa. Yuri had just said that it couldn't be done, so now Viktor's brain accepted it as a challenge.

"No! Absolutely not! I'm just saying that Maria's a bit young to start rolling over is all." Yuri clarified, seeming a bit guilty.

"Whatever you say Yuri, whatever you say." Viktor conforted, putting his right arm over his husband's shoulder. And something inside of the two parents gave them the signal that they should probably take a video of their 2 month old daughter. Not even two seconds after they started recording, Maira proved Yuri wrong and Viktor right, and rolled from back to front.

And Viktor could have sworn that the smile that Maria put on afterwards wasn't just one of "Yay! I finally did the thing I've been working at all day!", but was also a smirk that said "I decided what's possible"

 _January 26th, 2018_

Viktor: Hi Yuri

Yuri: It's 4:29 in the morning, where are you?

Viktor: About half an hour ago Masha woke up for a bottle but didn't go back to sleep, and because she's been making so much noise when she's wake, I put her 4 layers of clothing and all of her winter stuff then took her out on a walk to try and get her to fall asleep, but then it started to get too cold and now it's snowing. Thankfully, we were right near Ice castle, so were camping out in there

Yuri: Are you guys ok?!

Viktor: Yeah, we're fine. I had the security code written down on my phone, so we're just going to wait here for a few hours until I can call a taxi.

Yuri: In the back room, I stocked up my drawer with a can of formula, a bottle, and diapers for a just in case scenario. My code is 2327. I wish there was more I could do to help.

Viktor:Большое спасибо.

Yuri: You're welcome. The thermostat is in the back room too. Stay warm

Viktor turned off his phone and stuffed it in his pocket. It was much warmer in the lobby of the rink than it was outside. Masha, who was lying on one of the benches in the locker room, had been this close to falling asleep, but was so stimulated by being in Ice Castle that she seemed to forget she was tired. Viktor decided to just throw in the towel and let her stay up, after all, it wasn't like she was bothering anyone. Viktor sat down next to her and took Masha in his arms.

"Looks like it's just you and me in here for a few hours, Masha," He told her. "Do you have any ideas of what to do?"

"Aggbishiguia" Masha gurgled, and Viktor wasn't sure it was in response or not.

"I know how much you like music, we could use the stereo and play some Sleeping Beauty, would you like that?" Viktor suggested.

"Shibishibo"

"I'll take that as a yes." Viktor stood up and entered the rink. The lights were off, and the falling slow give the ice a brightness and the room a magical electricity that Viktor had never felt before, so he didn't turn on the lights. With one hand, he gradually connected his phone to the speaker and played "Awakening", from the Sleeping Beauty soundtrack. She loved music, Viktor remembered that when they watched the GPF, she paid rather close attention to the music that the skaters used. As usual, Masha perked right up when hearing her favorite music, and Viktor started to move her back and forth to the song, looked over at the ice, and got a crazy Idea. No, Yuri would never let him. But Yuri didn't need to know. He paused the music.

Viktor took Masha and went into the locker room, put her down, grabbed his skates from his locker(even though he wasn't Yurio's coach anymore, Takeshi still let him keep them there, after all, it's not he would never skate again) put them on, laced them up, and picked up Masha.

He re-entered the rink, and the snow had let up a little, giving the pale moon enough power to shine through the window, magically illuminating the ice. Viktor opened the door to the ice, removed the skates guards, held on to Masha tighter than he ever, and stepped on.

He very slowly skated in a line to the end of the rink, then stopped completely to, see how Masha reacted.

She was, for the first time, completely still. Her small eyes were wider than he had ever seen. She started at her Papa and gave him a heart-shaped smile that was so big, Viktor could barely believe that her face was big enough to hold it. What could he have possibly done to deserve her?

"Did you like that, Masha?" Viktor whispered to his daughter.

She cooed.

Viktor smiled back at her, turned, and skated back the other way. They repeated the process, skating, stopping, smiling, turning, then skating again all the way until it was time to go.


	32. Chapter 30

_Saturday, February 17th, 2018_

 _Hasetsu Japan_

"Happy Anniversary, sleeping beauty," Viktor whispered in my ear. I groaned and turned over.

"What time is it?" I groggily responded. Uninterrupted sleep is a very rare thing when you have a 3 month-old baby

"Time to wake up!" Viktor reiterated, giggling. Even though I'm so exhausted I feel like I'm covered in a layer of thick mud, I open one eye and see that it's still dark.

"No, it's still dark out. And besides, our anniversary was on Wednesday"

"But it wouldn't be as crowded today, and your parents said that today would be a better day for them to watch Masha! And besides, before the GPF we woke up at 5:30 all the time!" Viktor announced.

"5:30!?!?!" I whisper-shrieked, trying not to wake up Maria. "NO WAY!! 7 AT LEAST! GOODNIGHT!!!" I pulled the covers over my head.

"Yuuurrriii, I have reservations at a really cool café for breakfast!" Viktor gleefully pestered.

"How far away could this café be if we have to wake up at 5:30 in the morning?" I asked.

"You'll see. But we have to be ready and out the door by 6:30." Viktor dictated.

"Fine." I groaned. _But this better be worth it._ I thought to myself.

As we get off the train and step into the remote mountain town of Akiota, I realize exactly why Viktor picked to go to a café at 7 in the morning. All around us, Sakura trees were in full blossom, and the early morning sunrise made the blossoms seem more regal than the ones at home. In the skyline, you could see rows of breathtaking mountains, made pink by the cherry blossoms. Viktor shoots me an I-told-you-this-was-worth-getting-up-so-early smirk, and holds out his Right hand, displaying his glittering gold wedding band/engagement ring. I take his hand in mine, and we walk silently through the empty streets to the cafe, admiring the view as we go.

"Why did you make reservations if there is barely anyone else awake yet?" I ask him.

"Because this place is very special." He responds, smiling. We get to a set of stone stairs carved right into the mountain, and begin to climb. And Climb. And Climb.

"Are you sure it's ok for us to leave Maria like this?" I wonder.

"Don't worry, she's three months old, and I checked with her pediatrician, and he said it was perfectly fine!" Viktor reassured.

"I have anxiety. It's my job." I joke. We look at each other and smile.

I look up, and I see the cafe. It's rather small, and pretty standard when it comes cafe's, but the view was somehow even more breathtaking. We sat down at one of the outdoor tables, next to each other, still holding hands, and watched the sun come up, and peek out from behind the majestic pink mountains, and make the sea glisten as if nature was putting on a special private show for Viktor and me.

"Can you see why I woke you up so early now?" Viktor quizzed.

"Yeah. This is amazing." I respond.

"I know right? I heard of this place online and I saw a picture that was taken sometime in the afternoon, and I figured it would be so much prettier in the sunrise, and I was right!" Viktor explains, his mouth forming a happy heart shape. We both sit in silence for a while, admiring the view.

"Can you believe we're parents?"

"Нет. It's so much better than I expected."

"Yeah, I totally understand. Maria is the best daughter we could have ever asked for."

"Да."

More science, only to be broken when a waitress comes over to take our orders.

"Oh, I almost forgot. Happy Anniversary Viktor." I say after she leaves. pulling a small package, covered in heart wrapping paper, out of my sweatshirt pocket, and putting it on the table in front of him.

"Спасибо!" Viktor thanked, and carefully took off the wrapping paper. Inside the package as a small gold locket, shaped in a heart. Inside, however, is my favorite part. With the help of Mari, I put in a picture of Maria on the inside. It was from when she had heard Sleeping Beauty for the first time when her face was magically lit up and held a gigantic smile. I look at Viktor, smiling, as he opened up the locket, and I'm rather surprised to see small tears of joy coming out of his eyes, and he holds it in his hands.

"AWWW! Yuuri! I love it! Спасибо большое(thank you very much)!" He cries, and once he puts it on, he gives me a big hug and a kiss for appreciation.

"It's kinda weird, not having her here." I point out.

"Да. too weird." Viktor agreed.

"What else do you have planned for today?" I inquire

"Nothing we can't just abandon and go back home and spend the day with Masha." Viktor quickly answered

"Yeah let's do that." I am, talking the same speed.

"Good idea. She's probably really missing us" Viktor speculated.

"Yeah probably," I confirm

And the second we had paid and were done eating, we took the next train back to haste, and went directly back home, to see Maria's beautiful little face light up at the sight of us. Which was the best anniversary plan thing anyone could have asked for.


	33. Chapter 31

**Hello everyone! So just a quick note before we start, I am going to be going far into the future, but I'm going to be pretending that technology and stuff like that is going to be the exact same as it is today. Also name wise, Viktor is Papa and Yuri is Daddy. Thank you all so so so so so SO much for reading my work, I love all of you!!! And without further ado, chapter 31!**

 _12:59 pm August 13th, 2021_

 _Yu-Topia Katsuki, Hasestu Japan_

"I can do it!" Maria exclaimed in Russian. She and Papa were in the family kitchen (Witch was smaller and in a different spot than the big one that Obaachan(grandma) and Ojiichan(grandpa) used to cook food of the other people at the inn. If daddy was home, then Papa usually went into the big kitchen and helped them out.) Papa was making his famous strawberry cake, and Maria was helping him. She had dumped the flour and sugar and vanilla and milk into the big bowl, mixed it all up (with her special wooden spoon that looked just like Snow White's. Maria had even put on her Snow White play dress to match.) and now it was time to cut the strawberries to sprinkle on top of the batter.(which papa had poured from the big bowl to two pans)

"No thank you, Masha!" Papa replied, continuing to cut the strawberries.

"It's my turn!" Masha pleaded

"Sorry Masha, today it's my turn," Papa answered.

"Why?" She asked, not understanding why Papa wouldn't let her have a turn.

"Knives are dangerous"

"Why?" Papa used them all the time, it couldn't be too bad.

"Because the edge right here that cuts the strawberries is sharp, and if we aren't careful, then you could cut your finger, and we're making a strawberry cake, not a Masha cake!" Papa explained while giggling.

"Why?"

"Daddy, Auntie Yuuko, Uncle Takashi, the triplets, and Uncle Yurio like Strawberry cake better."

"Why?"

"Oh Look, I finished cutting the strawberries! Can you put them on the measuring scale for me please?" Papa requested, but Maria didn't budge. She instead, crossed her arms and pouted, because Papa wouldn't stop talking in time for her to get a turn to cut the strawberries.

"No!" She pouted, very upset.

"That's not a happy face!" Papa observed and kneeled down so he could look Maria in the eye.

Maira stomped her foot. Papa needed to learn to leave some strawberries for her to cut.

"Would it make you feel better if you taste-tested one of the strawberries?" He offered.

"Yes," Maira mumbled, taking the strawberry Papa held out for her, deciding to forgive him.

"Do you want to put the strawberries in the measuring scale or should I? Papa asked.

"Masha do it!" She exclaimed, not wanting to be excluded from more strawberry action. She grabbed a fistful of strawberries, and put them on the silvery plate thingy until Papa said;

"All done! 300 grams, perfect job Masha!"

"Thank you!" Masha thanked, as Papa put half of the strawberries into a bowl, then put the bowl next to her. In front of her, he put one of the silvery boxes with the cake batter inside.

"Now, we're going to take the strawberries, and sprinkle them across the ENTIRE pan, like this," Papa instructed, sprinkling the strawberries.

"Ok!" Masha sang back. She took all of the strawberries from her bowl into her hands, and very helpfully, sprinkled them very evenly over the direct center of the batter.

It took Papa a bit longer than Maria to put the strawberries in his pan, so witch her extra time, she spread the strawberries around in the batter to make a very pretty flower shape. But when Papa looked over at the strawberry flower, he did a heavy sigh. She looked into Papa's pan, and when she saw none of his strawberries were touching, she suddenly remembered that Papa wanted the strawberries NOT touching.

"Sorry, Papa. I forgot." She apologized.

"It's alright Masha." Papa forgave. He looked at the clock, and exclaimed, "The cakes should be done at 1:20(13:20), so we will get to Ice Castle at 1:30(13:30). Do you remember what happens at 1:30(13:30)?"

"YEAH! We go to the Ice Castle and say Hi to Daddy and Uncle Hamilton and then I and Daddy go skating!" Maria cried, her voice full of excitement.

"So, do you want to go change out of your pretty play dress and into that cute dinosaur outfit I put on your bed?" Papa suggested.

"ROAR!" Masha screamed, as she carefully got off of her stool.

"I'll take that as a yes." Papa giggled, as Maria ran into her room. It was right near Papa and Daddy's room, and before she was born, had been Daddy's room. For a little while l, it had been Uncle Hamilton's room too, but Maria couldn't imagine that.

On the wall opposite the window was a desk (that Maria and Papa had put special flower stickers on. They were special because Papa said they didn't leave sticky stuff on the desk when you took them off), that at the moment held her pink kid tablet and the box to a new puzzle that Papa had ordered on his laptop. It had 4 alphabets on it, the Hiragana one, the Katakana one, (with Maria liked better, because that one could write her name), the Russian one, and the English one.

Maria knew how to speak Russian and Japanese, she would talk in a Russian to Papa and Uncle Hamilton, and then everyone else in Japanese. But whenever she went over Uncle Hamilton's house, (they went over there whenever Daddy said it was Friday afternoon) before dinner, he would play her Hamilton songs (only the ones that Papa and Daddy said we're kid-friendly), and those would be in English. She didn't understand every word, even though Uncle Hamilton and Auntie Yuuko and Papa and Daddy could, and that made her mad. Daddy always told her that she was only 3, she had could already speak more languages that a lot of adults, but Maria still wanted to know English.

She walked skipped over to her bed, (it had a very pretty pink blanket on it, that had a picture of her 3 favorite Princess on it, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, and Rapunzel.) put on her dinosaur outfit (Blue shorts and a light blue shirt with a green dinosaur on the top), then re-arranged the stuffies and dollies and plushies that Papa had pushed aside to lay out her clothes. He didn't understand that each one had their own special place, (for example, Elly, Snow White Barbie, Sleeping Beauty Barbie, Rapunzel Barbie, and Cup of China all went on top of her pillow. Cup of China is a kitty stuffie that somebody threw on the ice rink for Uncle Hamilton when he did Ice Skating at the Cup of China, and when he got back home, he gave it to Maora) but Maira wasn't mad at Papa. Some things were harder to understand than others.

After she finished changing, she went back into the kitchen, and while the cakes were in the oven, at her request, Papa replaced the red snow white ribbons with green ones. And when the cakes were out of the oven, she and Papa left their home, and made the 10-minute walk to Daddy's work, the Ice Castle.


	34. Chapter 32

Hello everyone! I hope you all like Looooong chapters, because here comes the longest chapter I have EVER put out for the fic!!! I'm shifting the focus back to Yurio for this chapter, and for a few chapters some time in the future, and please please please don't hate me. There will be a happy ending in the horizon. Thank you so much for reading!!!

 _It happened so fast, Yurio didn't have time to process until it was too late. A gust of wind weaved its way through one of the many cracks in the wall, which was followed a sickening shatter, with ended with a shrill more deafening and terrifying than the winter wind._

 _"YURI PLISETSKY!"_

 _Yurio quickly jumped out of his blanket fort and raced to the source of the voice, which was in the kitchen, but froze when he saw what had happened._

 _Yurio's biological mother, Ayna Plisetskaya, stood behind 3 shattered glass plates. However, they weren't just any old plates. They were a creamy white, with a border of pink roses, and had originally belonged to Isidora Aleksandra Plisetskaya, Yurio's late grandmother._

 _"Would you care to explain how your Grandmother's plates got destroyed?" Plisetskaya interrogated. Yurio felt as if the already small room was closing in on him._

 _"I didn't do it, I was in my room," Yurio responded, trying not to stammer. And it was true, for the past hour, Yurio had been huddled under the blanket fort on his bed, reading a book he had got from school about Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space. (Every Friday afternoon, Yurio's teacher let the students pick out a book to read over the weekend from her class library. Yurio didn't like school or reading, but it was just something he did to pass the time before he got to go to his skating lesson)_

 _"So they just magically fell out of the cupboard?" Plisetskaya mocked._

 _"Het. Maybe the door was already open, I mean, it is kinda windy out." Yurio suggested._

 _"So you're saying that the door was open, and the wind pushed them out of the cupboard?"_

 _Yurio didn't do anything. It was a trap, he knew it. If he nodded his head, Plisetskaya would scream bullshit and assume it was him, but if he said that he was the one who did it, he would be lying._

 _"Answer me, Yuri." She commanded, taking a step closer. Yurio mentally took a step back, but in reality was glued to the floor. "Was. That. What. Happened?"_

 _Yurio nodded his head. He was a terrible liar, Plisetskaya knew that. Maybe, just maybe, she would believe him this time._

 _"BULLSHIT!" She screeched and grabbed the boy's wrist. Yurio winced and looked up at her raging face._

 _"Really Mom, I was in my room!" He meekly defended. But she didn't believe him. Plisetskaya raised her hand, and Yurio closed his eyes, braced himself for what he knew was coming next._

What felt like a volcano erupting in Yurio's cheek made him wake up with a jolt. He involuntarily brought his hand to his face, making sure that it really was just a dream, and the normal coolness made him realize it was.

Yurio reached for his phone, hoping it was a reasonable hour, knowing that there was no way he was going back to sleep. And luckily for him, He had a text from Otabek sitting in his messages.

Otabek: Hey

Yurio: You do know what time it is, right?

Otabek: Did I wake you up?

Yuri: Нет. Bad dream took care of that

Otabek: That's strange. Is everything ok?

Yuri: Да, Да. Nothing to be worried about.

Otabek: well if it woke you up at 10:30 (22:30) then it is.

Yuri: In Japan it's 1:30am

Otabek: To be fair, I didn't think you'd respond until a reasonable-for-you hour

Yuri: Whatever.

Otabek: seriously, what was the dream about?

Yuri: It wasn't really a dream, it was of a stupid memory from my last day with Plisetskaya that randomly pops up as a dream for no good reason.

Otabek: Is there anything I can do to help?

Yuri: Нет. I haven't had this happen for years, I was still skating for Russia the last time it happened.

Otabek: Maybe it's your brain trying to tell you to be alert for something? Before that night I attempted to contact you via Tumblr 4 years ago, I had a bad dream that my old coach actually went through with it.

Yuri: What the fuck would i have to be alert for!? Is Plisetskaya going to magically appear in front of Ice Castle tomorrow? Because the only way she's getting here is Magic, witch doesn't exist!

Otabek: Sorry, I was just trying to help

Yuri: I know.

Otabek: Am I the only one that knows?

Yuri: Нет. Okaasan and Viktor know, but other than that, nobody knows. And it's staying that way. When I first moved in with Okaasan and Otousan, Okaasan thought I should tell him, but the less people that know, the better.

Otabek: Personally, I think your Dad should know, but It's your decision.

Yuri: Thanks for respecting that.

Otabek: No problem. I got to go to bed, early practice tomorrow. Love you.

Yuri: Love you too. Goodnight.

After a poking around Tumblr for a little bit, miraculously, Yurio feel back asleep. He still dreamed about the same day, but to his pleasure, it was the best part of that day.

 _As Yurio stepped out of the lobby and into the ice rink, (Plisetskaya had only stayed to get Yurio's renal skates because he was too short to see over the counter. Well to be fair, the skate rental was included in Yurio's skating scholarship he had won through a giveaway.) Yurio could feel that something was different. There was an electrically in the air, one that he had never felt before, one that signaled that something was going to happen._

 _"Hey, Yuri!" Miss Kava called. She was college exchange student from Poland and was a volunteer at the rink and Yurio's instructor. But what Yurio always noticed about her was that wore her long brown hair down when she skated. She had a very sweet personality and was one of the few people that didn't judge Yurio for being so poor._

 _"Hi, Miss Kava."_

 _"Yuri, did you get another sunburn?" She questioned, bending over to get a better look at his face, but he reflexively stepped back. At Plisetskaya demand, whenever his face was red from her hand, he told everyone that he got a sunburn._

 _"Да, Да." He Scoffed, walking over to the bench. His class didn't start till 2:30 (14:30)._

 _"I swear, you are the only kid in Russia who gets a sunburn in the winter!" Miss Kava commented. "Oh, Yuri, you can go right on the ice today, and have free time while the rest of the kids come. The higher-ups want you kids on the ice as much as possible today."_

 _"Ok." Yurio responses took off the thin plastic skate guards, put them in the class cubby, and stepped onto the ice. Yurio always loved it there, the ice was the one place where he felt like he was in control. Not to mention he was the best one in his entire class._

 _"Hi, Yuri!" Evgenia greeted. Evgenia was a girl that was in the beginners figure skating class. In first grade, however, the two were in the same class at school and had become friends. And they made a good pair, because Evgenia was very chatty, while Yurio was more of the silent type. Although Yurio knew they would never be true friends, after all, she owned 16 different pairs of silky hair ribbons, and when her coat got a hole in it, the next day she would have a new one. Today, her long blond braids were tied off with ribbons that were in the pattern on the Russian flag._

 _"Hey, Evgenia." He answered, and the two of them skated over to the leftmost end of the rink, right next to the wooden panning that read; не все герои носят плащи._

 _"I wonder why they're letting us go on the ice early today. I think there is a very special guest because Mama put me in my fancy Russia hair ribbons and brushed my hair for nearly 20 thousand years, and she only ever does that on holidays. She also wanted me to wear my fancy figure skater dress, you know, the blue one with the twirly skirt and the sparkles on the top that I wore to show and tell last week, but I said that I should probably wear my normal black leggings and black long sleeve t-shirt that everyone else in my class wears and she said that was probably a good idea." Evegina chatted, barely taking time for a breath._

 _"If you mom says to do something, then you should probably do it," Yurio suggested, remembering the events of the morning._

 _"Probably. Hey, do you want to see my new trick I learned? Mrs.Zima said it was called a single toe-loop."_

 _"Да."_

 _"Cool, give two seconds to get enough space," Evgenia instructed, and Yurio skated back. Evgenia quickly bolted forward, extended her left leg, pushed off with her left foot, and did a simple rotation in the air, then made a wobbly landing. "What did you think? It was cool, right? I practiced really hard last Thursday getting it perfect."_

 _"That was really cool," Yurio commented. In his head, however, he bet that he could do it, without wobbling at the landing. "I'm gonna try."_

 _"Go ahead, but I'm just warning you, it's really really hard. It took me a long time to figure it out." She warned, then skated over to where Yurio had been previously standing._

 _Yurio took a deep breath in, then copied the same movements he had seen Evgenia do. And before he knew it m, Yurio was flying through the air like a Phoenix. A huge smile broke out on his face, he was in the air, and nobody could catch him. Except for gravity, and it pulled him down, but instead of falling, Yurio made a clean landing._

 _He turned to Evgenia, to find that her eyes were as big as the rink, and her mouth was gaping open in shock._

 _"THAT! WAS! AMAZING!!!" She cheered._

 _"Да, it was quite impressive." A deep voice commented. Yurio and Evgenia looked over, to see a man in a dark blue trench coat, blue scarf, chin length gray hair, a square jawline, and a gray hat._

 _"You look very familiar. Have I seen you somewhere before?" Evgenia asked._

 _"My name is Yakov Feltsmen, I am a skating coach. One of my students happens to be Viktor Nikiforov." Yakov cooly answered, and This time Yurio's eyes grew as wide as Evgenia's. Viktor Nikiforov? He was only 20, and was the top figure skater in the world! And his coach, the person who had helped him become such a legend had just said that Yurio's first ever attempt at a jump was impressive!_

 _"What are you doing here then?" Evgenia inquired. "Isn't your ice rink in St.Petersburg?"_

 _"Да, it is. I am here to watch my niece at practice." Yakov calmly answered. (He, of course, was lying, and was really in the rink scouting out new talent for the RSA. But he was a very good liar, so neither Evgenia or Yurio could tell)_

 _"That's cool. Sometimes Yuri 's grandpa watches him at practice. Yuri Plisetsky is the boy standing next to me, and he is my friend because we have the same birthday, March first, 2001. In fact, that toe-loop you just saw was his first jump ever! I showed him how I did it, and then he copied me, and did it better than I did, even though I've tried it a million times and he's only done it once!" Evgenia butted in. Yakov raised an eyebrow._

 _"Is this true?"_

 _"Да. She's in the figure skating class, I'm still in the normal ice skating class. But I can learn how to do more kinds of jumps if you want me too! I'll watch the other skaters do it, then I'll copy!" Yurio started, feeling a new surge of confidence. Something inside of him told him that he NEEDED to impress Yakov, that something good would come of it._

 _And that feeling inside of Yurio was right. Yakov talked to the skating teachers, and they let Yurio join Eugenia's class where he was easily the most talented one out there. And that 45 minutes was enough to win Yurio a spot on the RSA, which kickstarted the rest of his life._


	35. Chapter 33

_Saturday, August 21, 2021_

 _Hasetu, Japan_

 _(The day after Yurio's nightmare)_

"So, Maria, what is your very favorite thing to do?" Miss.Rosette asked Maria, in a very cheery voice. Miss.Rosette was as tall as Auntie Mari, and she had pretty brown eyes with pink around them. She also had red lips and curly light blonde hair, just like Sleeping Beauty. She was wearing a long dress with short sleeves, and the dress was covered in a very pretty rose pattern. (Maria, on the other hand, was wearing a yellow sundress with daisies on the skirt. Daisies were her favorite flower because they had yellow in the middle)

Miss.Rosette actual name was Rose Caron, but she said that Maria could call her Rosette because that was her nick-name. It felt it weird for Maria to call her that that. After All, Miss. Rosette was a grown up from Canada that came with a bunch of her friends who had cameras. Papa said they were going to film a TV special. Maria wasn't entirely sure what that meant, but Daddy said to just pretend that the camera people weren't there, unless they asked her a question.

Like right now. One of Miss.Rosette's friends had asked Papa and Daddy to sit on the white couch in their room and were now asking them questions. Questions Maira thought had something to do with her doing twirly jumpy ice skating, to witch Daddy and Papa responded something about her being at least in school before anything serious happened, and they didn't want to pressure her. But the 'interview', as Miss.Rosette called it, was entirely in English, and Maria wasn't good at English yet. (Miss.Rosette helpfully knew Japanese)

"I like playing with princess dollies!" Maira enthusiastically cheered. "All my Princess Dollies are in my room, wanna see?"

"I would love to!" Miss Rosette cheered. Maria grabbed her hand and ran off to show her and her camera friends her room. Papa had helped her clean the room the night before, so it was uncharacteristically clean. All the stuffies on the bed were in a nice, neat order(chosen by Maria of course), her desk was empty, (well mostly empty. The puzzle was STILL in the box unopened, which made Maria very mad), and all of her dollies were in green plastic bins.

"Do you like my room?" She asked Miss.Rosette.

"It's beautiful! And very clean."

"Don't worry, I can fix that," Maira reassured. And as Miss.Rosette's friends set up their cameras on poles, Maria took all of her favorite dolls out of the drawer and put them in the middle of the floor. She also grabbed a few handfuls of dresses, shoes, and some plastic dinosaurs. From her bed, she took the Barbies she had on there and a few stuffed animals.

"You have a lot of pretty dolls!" Miss.Rosette complemented. "What are their names?"

"The princess barbies from my bed are Sleeping Beauty Barbie, Snow White Barbie, and Rapunzel Barbie. The elephant is Elly, and I got her on my Zero birthday, and the kitty is Cup of China." Maria explained, setting everyone up in a circle. "The dollies from my draws are Cinderella Barbie, Ariel Barbie, Princess Peggy, and Hamilton dollie." (Princess Peggy was actually just a Moana Dollie in a Belle dress, and Hamilton Dollie was a Ken doll in a blue suit, but Maria didn't tell that to Miss.Rosette, because she didn't want to hurt the dollies feelings.)

"That's a lot of toys!" Miss.Rosette commented. "What should they do?"

"Well when I play princess dollies with Papa, they like to play in Sleeping Beauty's castle, and they talk Russian. When I play with Daddy, they like to go skating, but not twirly jumpy skating, just circle skating, and they like to talk Japanese. I don't get to play with Uncle Hamilton a lot, but when we do play, it's sometimes in Russian, but I like it better when we talk English because I'm not good at it yet. He made Princess Peggy and Hamilton dolls for me." Maria divulged.

"That sounds fun! Who is Uncle Hamilton?" Miss, Rosette inquired, as Maria handed her Cinderella Barbie, lA Barbie, a red dinosaur, and Rapunzel Barbie.

"Daddy and Papa and everyone else calls him Yurio, but I like to call him Uncle Hamilton because that's the music he listens to and he always smiles when I call him that. Sometimes he calls me Peggy because I like her yellow dress. Yellow is my favorite color." Maira divulged, putting a plastic ice skate on Snow White barbie's left foot.

"I see. So what game are we going to play?" Miss.Rosette asked.

"Princess go Twirly jumpy skating Skating," Maira announced and handed Miss.Rosette 3 ice skate shoes. "I don't have enough for every princess to have 2 skates, but they know how to skate with only one on."

"They must be really smart." Miss.Rosette responded, and flowed Maria's example.

"They are. Thank you!" Maria accepted, remembering her manners. "Look, Princess Peggy is doing an Axle!" Maria held Princess Peggy in the and twisted her around a couple times, then made her land, which caused Miss.Rosette to clap.

"I think I'll make Cinderella do a toe-loop." Miss.Rosette decided, then did something with Cinderella's feet to make her twirl through the air, but only once.

"Oh wait! I can't play princess jumpy skating without a princess dress!" Maira remembered, and dropped Snow White Barbie. She ran to her closet, opened it, and grabbed her pink Sleeping beauty dress from its hanger, (all her dress were on a rack that was lower than her clothes, so she could get them herself) and put it on over her sundress. After putting on the matching Tiara, she offered one of her dresses to Miss.Rosette. Miss.Rosette ho, pointed out that she was too big for the dresses. Maria suggested that she could put it on like a scarf, Papa did that sometimes, and still put on a tiara if she wanted to. Miss.Rosette said that was a wonderful idea, and she asked if she could borrow Maria's Cinderella dress. Maira happily took it off the hanger for her, and she put it on.

"Thank you so much, Maria!" Miss.Rosette thanked. "Should we continue with our game?"

"Yea! Princess Peggy was about to do a jump, but Oh no! JJ Dinosaur has broken into the Ice Castle!" Maria commentated, taking a green Dinosaur and making it go STOMP! STOMP! STOMP! All over the floor.

"JJ? As in Jean-Jacques Leroy?" Miss.Rosette questioned, looking slightly concerned.

"I think so. Whenever I play with Uncle Hamilton, he makes JJ Dinosaur do this, then sometimes he makes Hamilton doll pick up JJ Dinosaur and throw him out." Maria rambled, taking Cup of China and having them give JJ Dinosaur a hug. "But I always have to remind Uncle Hamilton that Cup of China has magic love powers and can make JJ Dinosaur nice."

"That's nice of Cup of China to do that." Miss.Rosette commented, but before they could keep playing, Papa and Daddy walked in and suggested they all go see Uncle Hamilton, with Maira thought, was a very good idea.


	36. Chapter 34

**Hi, everyone! Before we start on this LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOG chapter I have, I just need to announce a few things. 1, I am so super incredibly sorry that chapter 33 wasn't up to my normal quality. I was focusing too hard on trying to make my deadline that the quality was compromised, so for that, I would like to apologize. And 2, unfortunately, I don't think I'm going to be able to post every Sunday anymore. Everything with school has been so incredibly busy, so I haven't had nearly the amount of time I thought I did to really put the time and effort into these chapters. So I have decided to lessen the burden this deadline has had with my writing and focus on getting at least 1 new chapter out every two weeks. Don't worry, I still am going to try and get something out every week, but please please please don't get mad at me if I miss a week and are unable to post. Thank you all so much for reading and I love you all so much!!!**

 _1:23pm (13:23) August 21st, 2021_

 _Ice Castle Hasetsu, Hasetsu Japan_

Maria wandered around the back of Ice Castle, trying to where either Daddy, Papa, Uncle Hamilton, or Miss.Rosette and her friends went. After having to use the bathroom, Maria had taken the wrong turn and ended up at the end outside. It was very nice weather out, and Maria didn't think that Daddy and Papa would be mad at her for making a mistake, but she wanted to find her way back inside before anybody could worry. After what felt like hours (but in reality was 11 minutes), Maria wandered her way to the front door of the Ice Castle. And Great! Uncle Hamilton was standing right outside, with the same Cameras Miss.Rosette and her friends had!

Understandably, Maria ran right to her Uncle (But not so fast that she tripped over her dress or her Tiara fell off. The rule was she could either wear a play princess outfit or bring a stuffy or Dollie when she went out. Today she had decided to continue to wear her Sleeping Beauty outfit), but as she got closer, it took her 3-year old brain about 90 seconds to realize that Uncle Hamilton hadn't grown his hair to halfway down his back, changed into a dark red dress and high heels, put on black makeup around his eyes and red lipstick, but was an entirely different person altogether.

"Where the hell is he Dimitri? You said he would be here!" The-Mystery-person-who-kinda-looked-like-Uncle-Hamilton scolded, in Russian. To Maira, their voice sounded very shrill and high-pitched, almost like a sharp winter wind. "Why aren't we being let in?!"

"Miss.Plisetskaya, our sources have indicated that he is inside." A camera guy defended. "If you would prefer, we could try outside the Nishigori residence. His social media indicates he lives there."

"HET! You said that he posted a picture that said he was here!" Miss.Plisetskaya screamed. Plisetskaya, that name definitely rang a bell, but Maira couldn't figure out why. Maybe she could help her find whoever Miss.Plisetskaya was looking for, and in return, maybe she would help Maria open the door to get inside. (The door handle was too high up for Maria to reach)

"Hi!" Maria called, in Russian, as she walked on over. "My Japanese name is Maria Nikiverof, but my Russian name is Masha. I use she and her Pronouns. What's your name?"

Miss.Plisetskaya walked over to Maria, and instead of leaning down or bending over to get eye level with Maria, like most tall people did, Miss Plisetskaya stood right over Maria, and only tilted her head the tiniest bit, to make eye contact. "Miss.Plisetskaya. Where is my son?" She firmly interrogated.

Maria gulped a little bit. Miss.Plisetskaya seemed kinda scary with her tallness and shrillness and big dark makeup. "What's his name?" Maria asked, knowing it was impolite to stop a conversation after introducing yourself, even if the person you were talking with was much scarier up close than far away.

"Yuri Plisetsky." Miss.Plisetskaya cooly replied. A sudden bell clicked in Maria's head.

"I didn't know Uncle Hamilton has TWO mommies!" She happily/shocking exclaimed, as soon as she remembered that Uncle Hamilton's real name was Yuri Plisetsky. "I'm kinda like that too, I have two Papas and they are married and-"

"People can not have two mothers." Miss.Plisetskaya interpreted, using her scolding voice again. "And who this Uncle Hamilton person?"

"Oh, His real name is-" Maira started, before getting the strange feeling that telling Miss.Plisetskaya that Uncle Hamilton was really Yuri Plisetsky was a bad idea. "Sully. Yea, that's his real name. Sully Ploiesti."

Maria, however, realized why lying was not a very nice thing to do, because of Miss.Plisetskaya took a step closer to her and bent over, even more, meaning their faces mere centimeters apart, which made her look even more terrifying.

"What? Did? You? Say?" Miss.Plisetskaya interrogated, clearly getting angry.

Maria mumbled something along the lines of "I'm sorry I was lying but you're kinda in my personal space and I don't think Uncle Hamilton really wants to talk to you but I don't know why." While taking a backward step away from Miss.Plisetskaya. but it was a strange mixture of Japanese, Russian, and English, making it impossible for Miss.Plisetskaya to understand.

"I am going to ask you one more time. WHERE IS YURI PLISETSKY?!" Miss.Plisetskaya shirked, scaring the absolute daylights out of Maira.

"You're scaring me." Maira wimped, after all, Miss.Plisetskaya probably didn't know that she was being scary. Papa said tall adults don't realize their scaring kids sometimes, and if she just told them everything thing would be ok.

"Really? You think this is scary?" Miss.Plisetskaya mocked.

Maira nodded her head. Miss Plisetskaya followed that up with something Maria didn't quite catch, but she assumed that is was something along the lines of "I didn't realize that." Because Miss.Plisetskaya took a step back and raised her hand for what Maria thought was a high-5.

Where could she be?" Yurio exclaimed. He, Okaasan Viktor, the Japanese Yuri, and the camera crew following Masha had combed through the entire Ice Rink, but to no avail. And to make things even worse, there was this weird ass feeling that Maria was in real trouble, even though there was nothing logical outside that could really harm her.

"I'll check the front door. Maybe she somehow wandered outside and is trying to get back in." Yurio stated and started towards the door, as Okaasan agreed to check the back of the rink. It seemed like the best place to look. However the August day made the lobby of Ice Castle very hot, so all the windows were open, to let in a breeze. But what Yurio heard wasn't a gentle, careful breeze. Instead, it was a shrill wind that defied all science and logic and sense.

"WHERE IS YURI PLISETSKY?!" Shrieked none other than Anya Plisetskaya.

Yurio froze in place. Everything thing seemed to slow down. It was impossible, There was absolutely no fucking way she was here. What was she doing here? No, he was just hallucinating. It was another dream, that's what this is. Just a dream. Yurio made himself take another step towards the window. It was a dream, nothing could hurt him. He kept slowly taking one petrified step after another until be got to a spot where he could see out of a window.

And what he saw completely wiped any doubt from his head. There was a Russian film crew behind her, with semi-explained how it was possible she was here. She was wearing a form-fitting wine-red dress and tall black high heels he had never seen before, and her face was caked in makeup. However, it was still undeniably the same woman that was his biggest fear, even 11 years later. But what was the final, and most terrifying, straw for Yurio was that he had accomplished his original mission. Because standing right in front of Plisetskaya was his own niece.

Yurio watched in horror Her lips mumbled something that was barely audible, much a contrast to her usual loud personality. Then Plisetskaya mocked her, and when Masha nodded, Plisetskaya said something and took a step back. Yurio knew exactly what that meant, even 11 years later.

Yurio only had one thought as his feet finally found the courage to move, running clean through the front door of Ice Castle, and effortlessly slid down to get between Masha and Plisetskaya hand. Masha was too young for this to happen, Yurio was the only one who could take it.

Even though it had been so long since the last time it had happened, Plisetskaya fiery-hot volcano eruption felt just as it always did. It started with one single site, then the lava would spread, illuminating and staining trough Yurio's entire right cheek. But unlike previous times, Yurio was not in a run-down apartment, but in a concrete parking lot. And the impact of Plisetskaya blow combines with how low to the ground Yurio had started caused the 19-year-old to fall smack dab into the pavement. This new pain was much worse than Plisetskaya's original intention, but Yurio took it with nothing but a wince. Masa was safe.

"Look who decided to join us." Plisetskaya condensing commented, in English for whatever reason, but Yurio didn't have time to listen. Yurio sat up, then quickly turned to Masha.

"Masha, are you alright? did she hurt you?" He hurriedly asked, in Japanese, as he inspected her all over. Her eyes were the size of plates, and he could see the confusion and shock.

"いいえ(No). But she was looking for you and I lied and said I didn't know you so she yelled a bit and scaring me but I told her so. then she said something I didn't hear and then she started to do high-5 but then you came!" Maria explained, unable to figure out how to react.

"Masah, let's go inside, we need to go inside." Yurio insured, and opened up the ice castle door, allowing her to scurry inside. Once she was inside, he very quickly contemplated his options. He could either A; run inside with Maria and hide until something else came and took away her attention, B; stay outside and be a doormat for whatever the fuck Plisetskaya wanted. Both of those options were not going to work because there were stupid cameras recording his every move. And Yurio had spent his entire life keeping Plisetskaya's actions a secret from the rest of the world. But they had recorded everything, the secret was out. This factor made Yurio decide on the third and most dangerous option, C; face his fears head-on and get Plisetskaya out of here.

He instructed Masha to go find her fathers, then closed the door and faced Plisetskaya. "What do you want Plisetskaya?" He sternly asked, clenching his hands into fists to keep from shaking.

"I am your mother Yuri, I expect you to address me as such." She scolded. Even though they were the same height, yurio still felt as if she was standing over him. "I was going to be calm about this, but that little girl gave me no choice."

"But Why are you here?" Yurio repeated.

"Because I cannot have a homosexual don." Plisetskaya divulged. "Dimitri here approached me last week and told me that you have been in a homosexual relationship for 3 years, and for that to occur that there must have been a traumatic event in your past life that had to cause your brain to become sick. He volunteered to fly me out here under the condition that I would fix you, and they could capture the event on camera to show other parents how to deal with the same situation."

"And how are you going to fix me?" Yurio sarcastically shot back. Somehow, it was seeming a lot easier to deal with her antics.

"You must forgive me. Dimitri said my over-punishing you caused you to not trust women, which has turned your mind into what it is." She dryly explained.

Yurio barley laughed in private, normal circumstances, let alone in dangerous situation with cameras capturing his every move. But the utter ridiculousness of Plisetskaya demand, reasoning behind it, and the fact that she was only hopping onto the whole 'him-and-beka-being-a-thing-causing-controversy' bandwagon now was so much that Yurio's brain had no other reaction but to laugh harder than anyone had ever seen.

"I am being serious yuri. Forgive me!" She commanded, her voice starting to rise. She was getting angry, but Yurio didn't care anymore. She had officially passed the line from terrifying to insane.

"No," Yurio stated. He would never forgive her, he didn't even forgive people under normal circumstances.

"What do you mean No? I am your mother, you do what I tell you too!"

"You're not my mother anymore Plisetskaya."

"Really? Then who is?"

"ME." Okaasan declared as she ran from the side of Ice Castle. Although to Yurio, it seemed more like a guardian angel was coming to defeat the devil that was Anya Plisetskaya. It was easy to de-humanize her, and dehumanizing her was how Yurio was getting through this entire experience.

"REally, her? Not that you have any excuse to try and replace me, but out of all women in the world you pick her? She looks just as ditzy as that little girl in the princess dress." Plisetskaya commented. That was the final straw for Yurio. Plisetskaya could come here, she could be insane, she could hit him every day for the next 20 years for all Yurio cared. But nobody insulted his mother like that.

"YES HER!" Yurio screamed, in Russian, completely forgetting all attempts to be civilized and never screaming in front of Masha. (When she was born, Yurio had made a promise to himself to never, under any circumstances, yell in front of Maria, or take out his anger physically, even on something like a pillow)

"DON'T YOU FUCKING YELL AT ME YURI!" Pliseckaya shrieked, her own hands starting to fist up. "I AM YOUR MOTHER!"

"NO YOUR NOT!" Yurio raged back.

"Do I need to prove to you that I am your mother?" Plisetskaya frustratedly asked

"What the hell did you have in mind?" Yurio questioned.

"A mother knows everything about her child." Plisetskaya reasoned. Suddenly, something inside Yurio clicked he quickly turned his head toward Okaasan to get her attention. This was crazy, but it totally would work.

"So if you are truly my mother, then you could answer any question about me and get it right?" Yurip echoed, in English.

"Дa."

"I have an Idea." Okaasan jumped in, getting the message. "Yuri will ask us both the same questions, and if you get more right, then Yuri will actually make an effort to try and reconnect with your, and if I win, then you get out of Japan right this instant'"

"How do I know you won't rig it?" Plisetskaya interrogated.

"Because I will ask the questions and be the judge." Dimitri, the camera guy who had brought all of this court, interjected. "A trivia fight will definitely be what we need to turn the special around!" He wasted to Plisetskaya, in Russian.

"Works for me." Okaasan agreed.

"First question. How Many GRand Prix finals has Yuri won, including the junior circuit." Dimitri asked.

"3" Plisetskaya confidently guessed although it was completely clear to both Yurio and Okaasan that she has absolutely no clue.

"6, constitutively," Okaasan answered, smiling.

"That's not fair! That skating thing is way to hard to understand!" Plisetskaya defended

Immediately Dimitri's confident look turned into one of despair. "The answer is 6." He pulled out a cellphone and looked on Yurio's Instagram. "Next question. What's his boyfriend's name?"

"Otabek Altin." Okaasan quickly answered.

"That's not a fair question either! This is supposed to be about Yuri!" Plisetskaya nitpicked.

"Anya, I'm taking these right off of his social networking accounts, everyone knows these things!" Dimitri hissed, in

Russian.

"Wait, what?" Okaasan asked, pretending as if she didn't hear Dimitri talking in Russian.

"He's telling Plisetskaya that anyone could easily just look up this information in two seconds" Yurio translated.

"Alright, next question" Dimitri quickly hurried. "Yurio's favorite food."

"Katsudon Piroshkis!" Okaasan cheered.

"Piroshkis doesn't matter what kind." Plisetskaya guessed.

Dimitri flashed an evil looking smile as both Yurio and Okaasan felt a tightness in their chests. But then they both reminded themselves that it was just a lucky guess, and she was clearly coping off Okaasan anyway.

"Anya, you're correct. Last question. Whoever gets this is the winner." Dimitri announced. "What is the name of Yuri's cat?"

Now when yurio originally came to hasetsu, he had had to leave behind his cat, Potya in St.Petersburg. Mila Had been nice enough to volunteer to take care of her, but since cats weren't allowed on planes in the St.Petersburg airport, it had taken until the following year for her to actually get Potya to Hasetsu.

"That's easy, Yuri hates all animals." Plisetskaya confidently answered, which made Okaasan and Yurio feel much more at ease.

"Potya," Okaasan responded, her smiling getting even bigger as Dimitri's face fell.

"Sorry, Anya, but Nishikori won." He mumbled and backed away in fear of Plisetskaya temper. Plisetskaya however, turned to Okaasan and Yurio.

"This isn't over Yuri. I will get my apology, you'll see." She vowed, fuming.

"До свидания(Goodbye) Pliseakayka." Yurio smugly waved, then took Okaasan hand and went right inside ice Castle.


	37. Chapter 35

**Hello everyone! I'm really really sorry I didn't have a chapter last week, I had the PSATs (In case you don't know it's a practice for a big fancy standardized test that I need to take and do good on if I want to go to college) and I met my baby cousin for the first time on Sunday, so I was a little busy. Also, I know Japanese schools start at the first g, but for the sake of keeping Maria's age "in-tune" if you will with what I have further down the road, I have decided that Hasestu Elementary will have a kindergarten class! Thank you all so much for reading I love you so much enjoy the chapter!**

 _9:19am, April 3rd, 2023_

 _Hasestu Elementary_

 _Hasestu, Japan_

"Hello, class! My name is Ishikawa-Sensei and I use she/her pronouns, nice to meet you!" Ishikawa-Sensei introduced, writing her name, 石川先生 on the big whiteboard behind her in a green marker. Maria was 5, and today was her very first day of school! Currently. She was sitting in her kindergarten classroom at the orange table, with 4 other kids. Each of the 6 tables in her class was a different color of the rainbow, and they were arranged in 2 rows of 3. Or was it 3 rows of 2? Maria wasn't entirely sure, but Iwasaki-Sensei was standing in the front of the room, with the Red, Orange, and Yellow tables in front of her, and the Green, Blue, and Purple tabled behind them. The walls were a bright pastel yellow, and behind the tables were 3 big windows that showed the playground and the pink cherry blossom trees in full bloom. Underneath the windows was a long, low bookshelf that held the class library, and in the very back right corner was a big circular rug with the Hiragana and Katakana alphabet on it, along with some emoji bean-bag chairs and heart pillows for maximum comfort and adorableness. The rest of the back of the room was mostly drawers that held supplies such as Paper, Colored pencils, pens, and erasers, but also had a long white table that held 3 desktop computers. (Although there was a sign on them that said something Maira couldn't read, but assumed said ask-permission-before-going-online). The upper right corner was the classroom door (it had a sign that said あ-3), and on the upper left corner was Ishikawa-Sensei's desk.

"Nice to meet you!" Maria and the rest of her classmates echoed back.

"Thank you! Now to get to know each other better, we are going to take a piece of paper and 5 crayons each from the art drawers. The drawer for paper has the world for paper, which is written like this." Ishikawa-Sensei explained, then wrote 紙 and on the whiteboard. "And the crayon drawer as the word crayon on it as well, and looks like this." And again, she wrote クレヨン on the whiteboard. "It's alright if you don't understand, after all, it's only the first day, so there is also pictures on each drawer. Now on your paper, I would like you to each draw your family, and if you know how, write your name on it. When everyone is done, we will share our names, pronouns, and drawings with our table groups. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Ishikawa-Sensei!" The class and Maria confirmed, then when they were given permission, got their paper and crayons from the drawers.

"Hi, my name is Maria Nikiforova, I use she/her pronouns. And as for my drawing, That's Pappa That's Daddy, thats me, thats my doggie, Princess, that's Auntie Mari, that's Obaasan, and that's Ojisan. Princess is the newest member of my family, we just got her a few months ago. Does anyone have any questions on my drawing?" Maria announced, to her table group as the pointed to each family member in turn. It had been no trouble finding and picking out her colors (Light Blue, black, yellow, brown, and silver), and she had even written her first name,マリア! (Papa had taught her how, and that was all Maira knew how to write. Her last name was too many letters to remember)

"I wish I had a doggie." Sora, who used they/them pronouns, sighed. Their black hair was cut at their ears, and they wore a long red t-shirt dress with elbow-length sleeves.

"But we have a baby brother, that's good too!" Shota, who used he/him pronouns, interjected. He was Sora's twin brother and had the same haircut, but instead of wearing a dress, he wore black pants and a red shirt.

"I guess." Sora sighed back. "But he cries a lot, especially in the middle of the night, and it hurts my ears."

"Why do you live with your Grandparents and Auntie?" Asked Kanon, who also used She/her pronouns. Her black hair was in low pigtails, but they only reached down to her shoulders, and she wore jeans and a Moana T-shirt.

"My family owns the hot-springs inn, and my Auntie mostly runs it, but Papa, Ojisan, and Obaasan help out a lot too. One time Daddy and Papa talked about maybe moving to an apartment, but Ojisan And Obaasan said that if we did then they would be sad and also the other apartments don't allow dogs." Maria divulged.

As for her hair and clothes, she wore her 'daisy-outfit' a yellow short-sleeve polo shirt with a white skirt. (Now Maira was a very clean child. so Viktor and Yuri trusted her to wear a knee-length white circle skirt to her first day of school. Not to mention the fact she was stubborn as hell and they knew that once she set her mind to something, nothing on earth could change it) Her waist-length hair was in a high ponytail, which is how she wore it whenever she was skating with Uncle Hamilton. She figured that if it helped her focus then, it would help her focus during school. (After the day Plisetskaya came to Hasestu, Yurio had asked Maria what he could do to try and make up for roping her into all this, and she had asked him to teach her how to figure skate. Yurio happily agreed, and she was skating at a level at the age of 5 he had barely accomplished at the age of 11)

"That makes sense," Kanon confirmed.

"Is the guy with the silver hair and yellow necklace your Ojisan?" Ayame, who used she/her pronouns, asked. She had her hair in a very professional braided bun, and she wore tan pants and a pink shirt.

"No, that's Papa, and his necklace is the shape of a heart, and inside, inside it has a picture of me from when I was a baby and on the other side it has a picture of Daddy," Maira answered.

"That's really cool!" Ayame exclaimed. "My Mommy has a necklace like that too! Wait, where's your Mommy?"

"I don't have a Mommy, I have two Daddies and there married to each other ." Maria clarified.

"That makes sense." Ayame understood.

"I've seen your Papa before!" Kanon remembered. "But he was talking kinda weird and I didn't understand it so I just kept walking."

"He wasn't talking weird, he was just speaking Russian!" Maira deciphered. "It's not that hard to speak Russian, I can do it!"

"Woah! You speak two languages?!" Shota and Sora burst out.

"No, I know 3! Japanese, Russian, and English!" Maira shared.

"Cool." The twins replied.

"Can you talk in Russian for us?" Kanon investigated.

"Да, я могу! На самом деле, мне очень нравится разговаривать на других языках!(Yes I can! In fact, I really like talking in other languages) Maira said, and to her surprise, was met with a round of applause. "If you want, I can teach you guys some Russian." she offered.

"YEA!" Everyone cheered at once, and they probably would have said more, but Ishikawa-Sensei brought everyone's attention back to the front, which stopped the conversation, but in no way could stop the friendships that were forming.


	38. Chapter 36

**Hello!!!!! Thank you all so much for reading my work! I just wanted to let you know of some format changes that will be semi-starting this chapter! So for part 1, (chapters 1-25) there was more of a cohesive storyline, and for part 2 (chapters 26-now), it has been more of a slice-of-life style, with more stand-alone short stories. So starting with this chapter, I will be going back to more of a part 1 format, and as of now, will be continuing that for the rest of the fic. Also if you have any questions or suggestion on any of the charters or where the storyline should go, feel free to message me! I Thank you all so much for being so patient with me, I love you all so much thank you for reading!!!**

 _12:23pm, October 2nd, 2023_

 _Hastesu elementary, Hastesu Japan_

"Maria, what's wrong?" Ayame asked Maria during free time. "You never draw angry faces, and your paper is full of them." Maria, Ayame, and Shota were coloring, Kanon was reading a book (but was mostly looking at the pictures), and Sora was making a bunny out of play-dough.

"I'm mad at the legal people." Maria Pouted.

"What did they do?" Shota inquired, adding the finishing touches to his galaxy drawing.

"So My Uncle Otabear is coming here from Kazakhstan to visit us next month and everyone in my family is asking Uncle Hamilton when he and Uncle Otabear are going to get engaged, but whenever they talk about it it makes Uncle Hamilton mad." Makra

"Why would that make him mad? Weddings are a lot of fun! I went to one on a boat once." Kannon interrupted.

"I didn't understand either, so I asked him why and he said that he wasn't mad because he didn't want to marry Uncle Otabear, but he wasn't allowed too."

"But that makes no sense!" Ayame exclaimed. "Why wouldn't they be allowed to get Married. Were they mean to the cake guy?"

"No, Daddy explained it to me later. Weddings are actually two parts, one part religious and/or social, which is going to church and wearing a pretty dress and all the fun stuff."

"Like in Tangled Ever After!" Sora cried out.

"Yea!" Maria agreed before her expression turned sour again. "But there's also a second part, which is legal. That part isn't fun, it's just writing your name on papers saying that your country says the marriage is ok. And that's the part I'm mad at. Apparently, in Russia and Kazakhstan, they don't give the papers to uncle Otabear and Uncle Hamilton."

"Why not?" Kanon. "Did they do something wrong?"

"I don't know!" Maria angrily exclaimed. "They only need one of the countries to give them the papers to make it work, but the legal people are too mean that they won't do it. It doesn't make sense." The rest of the orange table agreed with her, and at it silence for a moment, trying to figure out why the legal people wouldn't give the paper

Why does the wedding papers even have to come from Russia or Kazakhstan anyway?" Kanon inquired. "I mean, whenever your Uncle is on TV the Japan flag is next to his name."

"I think it's Because Uncle Otabear doesn't speak Japanese, but I'm not sure," Maria answered.

"Maybe they just ran out of Paper and crayons," Shota suggested, his eyes lighting up. "We could take some extra paper form the art drawers and mail it to the legal people in Russia and the other place-"

"Kazakhstan." Maria corrected.

"- so they can use it to make more wedding papers so your Uncles can get married," Shota suggested.

"That would work!" Kanon confirmed. "I'll go over to the computer and then we can find Russia's and Kazakhstan's address. I'm really good at using the computer."

"But Kanon, those are countries." Ayame pointed out. "There are a lot of addresses in Countries."

"Then maybe we could just write RUSSIA and KAZAKHSTAN on the envelopes and the mail guy will understand." Sora proposed.

"That would be awesome! That you guys so much for helping me!" Maira thanked. "I can put it in the mailbox at the Inn!"

"Then what are we waiting for! Let's get started!" Ayame cheered, and the 5 friends got to work.

 _12:18 pm, October 17th, 2023_

 _Hasestu Elementary, Hasestu Japan_

But even though they sent 2 whole pieces of Paper to Kazakhstan and 3 whole pieces to Russia (Russia was bigger on the map than Kazakstan, so they decided that Russia probably needed more paper.) along with a bunch of pencils and a note explaining what they were for, two weeks later neither Russia or Kazakhstan gave Uncle Hamilton and Uncle Otabear wedding papers.

"I don't understand why it didn't work!" Shota huffed. "It was a really good plan!"

"Maybe we should have written the notes in Russian and Kazakstanian." Maira glumly pointed out. "They probably can't read Japanese."

"That's why did n't work," Sora confirmed, and the entire tables let out a sigh of frustration and how-could-we-have-forgotten. But after a few moments of silence, Ayame's face lit up.

"Wait, Maira, you know Russian right?" She quickly integrated.

"Да," Maira replied.

"And your Uncle Otabear is coming to Japan on Friday?" Ayame confirmed

"No, he's coming in two weeks, on Halloween. It's also his birthday." Maria corrected.

"What if we wrote the wedding papers ourselves?" Ayame pitched. "We can look upon the computers what you have to say in a wedding paper, then Maria you can write it down in Russian! And when your Uncle Otabear comes to Japan then you can ask him to come with your Uncle Hamilton to pick you up then we can give it to them in person! What do you think"

"It's perfect!" Maira exclaimed, finding it hard to keep an inside voice.

"Kanon, are you sure you can look it up the on the computer? That's gonna be hard." Shota pointed out.

"Why don't we just ask Ishikawa-Sensei what goes on a wedding paper? We are going to have to ask her permission first anyway." Kanon suggested.

"That would work a lot faster." Sora agreed.

"This is going to be so much fun! And since it's gonna be Halloween, we can give them the papers in our costumes!" Maria cheered. "Thank you guys again for helping."

"It's no problem! Friends help each other out!" Ayame accepted. And with that, all 5 children leaped out of their seats and walked over to their teacher, who was sitting at her desk.

"Hello Kanon, Sora, Shota, Maria, and Ayame. What can I do for you 5 today?" Ishikawa-Sensei greeted.

"What goes on wedding papers?" Maria asked. Now, she expected that it would take Ishikawa-Sensei a minute to answer, but she did not expect the massively confused look on her face. "My Uncle Otabear and Uncle Hamilton want to get married but Daddy said that Kazakhstan and Russia won't give them the papers." She clarified.

"Oh yes, I remember now, you asked me about this a few weeks ago. Did they send anything back?" Ishikawa-Sensei politely asked.

"No!" Ayame answered. "So we decided to make our own."

"I see," Teacher-Seni responded. "Well on the papers, it says a lot of things, but shortened down, they say that the government says its ok for two people to get married."

"ありがとうございました(thanks) Ishikawa-Sensei!" The group thanked, then skipped back over to the orange table.

"That was really easy! We'll have them done in about two minutes!!" Sora exclaimed.

"But Maria still has to translate it." Kanon pointed out.

"Is it hard to write in Russian?" Ayame asked.

"Нет." Maira responded. "Papa taught me how. Russia says you can get married is Россия говорит, что вы можете жениться in Russian."

"But what about Kazakhstan?" Shota brought up. "Do we need to write it in that language too?"

"I don't think so." Maira clarified. "Uncle Hamilton said that only one country has to say it's ok for the papers to happen."

"Maybe we should still write it in Kazakstaniese just to be safe," Ayame suggested. "You can look up how to write it on the computer, Kanon, then we could just copy."

"That would work," Kanon confirmed. "I'll grab a piece of paper and we can look it up!"

"Wait! We should use pretty color paper in the color of the flags Ishikawa-Sensei's map has the countries flags as the continuous."

"Yea! Yellow for Kazakhstan, because that's on their flag and yellow is the prettiest color ever!!!" Maria instructed.

"And red for the Russian one, red is my favorite color." Sora decided.

"Let's do it then!!" Ayame cheered, and the 5 children quickly got to work, barely being able to contain their excitement.


	39. Chapter 37

**Hey guys! I am SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SORRY I forgot to publish this chapter last week! I had it done and everything, but I was actually apartment and furniture shopping with my mom, and I was so excited about that (And I also spent a good portion of my day at Ikea on 20% phone battery) that I completely forgot to post this chapter! But Don't worry, I Will make it up to you guys by posting TWO chapter this week! TWO! I promise this won't happen again, I actually have the next 5 or so chapters planned out, and a break from school coming up (Thank you Thanksgiving!) so I will have plenty of time to write! Thank you all so much for putting up with me I love you so much thank you for reading!!!!**

 _Halloween, 2023_

 _Hasestu Elementary, Hasestu Japan_

"Are you guys ready?" Maira asked her friends, as they stood in their line outside the classroom The big digital clock on the wall read 2:03 (14:03), only two more minutes before it was time to go home, and the would give Uncle Otabear and Uncle Hamilton the papers they made. They had all worked really hard on them, and it had taken a lot longer than they had originally thought, but they had finished it the day before. And the best part was that it was also Halloween, so they got to give them the paper in their costumes. Maira was being Snow White, and she also had the matching tiara from her dress-up set and an apple in her bag for snack. (But it wasn't poison, Papa had arrested her of that). She had wanted to keep her hair down, but then he remembered it had hard to focus on anything with it getting in her face. But just before she was out of hope, Papa had come to save the rescue. He had taken the front bit of hair around her forehead and ties it into a small ponytail, with was absolutely perfect. (he had even put in an apple clip where the ponytail was!)

"I have the Kazakhstan one right here!" Kanon confirmed. She was dressed up as Moana, and even had Moana's shell necklace, which had a heart-of-Tfti you could take out! (Although Ishikawa-sensei said it had to stay at her desk, after all, Ta-ka wasn't in school today. And if they did show up, she would let Kanon give it to her.)

"And I have the Russian one!" Shota added. He was a JAXA Moon Astronaut with a silver space suit. (he also had a helmet, but Ishikawa-Sesni told him there was no need for it in class because the air inside the classroom was ok to breath, but if the atmosphere did become unstable, he could go to her desk and get it)

"What should we call your Uncle Otabear?" Sora group up. They were dressed up ad Gecko from PJ mask, but they didn't bring in the mask because they didn't like it that much. "I don't want to be rude to him."

"Maybe we could call him Mr.Otabear" Ayame suggested. She was in a spooky Halloween outfit, which consisted of; an orange jack-o-lantern shirt that read ブー!, a black ruffled skirt, black tights with glittery purple spider webs on them, and candy corn ribbons tied at the end of her shoulder-length braids.

"That would work." Maria agreed, as the big fancy digital clock FINALLY showed 2:05, and everybody went in an organization's mad dash outside.

The courtyard outside of Hasestu Elementary was concrete but was extremely colorful from all the kids drawing on it with calk. There were 2 rows of sakura trees lining the sides of the courtyard that wasn't the main road or the school, and today they were beautiful reds and oranges. When Uncle Hamilton picked her up, it was always at the 5th tree from the school, on the right t. And when Maria looked, there he was! But even better, Uncle Otabear was standing next to him!

Maria got so excited to see them that she ran over as fast as humanly possible, Completely forgetting the fact that she was in a long Snow White dress, the ground was solid concrete, and that her friends were counting on her for directions. But thankfully, they knew what Uncle Hamilton looked like, and they didn't have any problems finding him.

"HI Uncle Hamilton!" Maria greeted in Russian, giving him a big hug.

"Hey, Masha." Uncle Hamilton replied, returning the hug. She spun around to greet Uncle Otabear but was thoroughly confused and surprised to she Daddy and Papa.

"Don't worry Maria, You can still give Uncle Yurio and Uncle Otabear their surprise." Daddy reassured, in Japanese.

"And besides, We want to record them opening it!" Papa added, in Russian.

"Hi, Uncle Otabear! Happy Birthday!" Maira greeted Uncle Otabear, in English, who gave a momentary look of confusion at Uncle Otabear, who gave him a 'just-go-with-it' look back. When she had asked, Uncle Hamilton had told her that Uncle Otabek spoke English best, and Maira had been extremely excited to have someone to practice with.

"Thanks, Maria." Otabek thanked. "Who are your friends?"

"The girl dressed up as Moana is my friend Kanon, the girl in the Jack-o-lantern shirt is Ayame, the astronaut kid is Sora, and the boy dressed as Gecko is Shota." Maria introduced.

"Nice to meet you!" The four children greeted, in Japanese, bowing. And apparently, Uncle Otabear had been practicing Japanese because he returned the words and awkwardly bowed back.

"Can we give them the surprise now!?" Ayame desperately pleaded.

"Yea!" Maira confirmed, and turned back to Uncle Otabear and Uncle Hamilton, not noticing that Papa had discreetly taken out his phone and was recording.

"So Uncle Hamilton, remember how a few weeks ago everyone was asking when you and Uncle Otabear we're going to get married and you told me that you wanted to but you couldn't because the legal people said no?" Maria chatted, in English, so Uncle Otabear could understand too.

"Yes." Uncle Hamilton replied, looking a bit sadder than Maira expected.

"So I talked to my friends about it, and we figured out that the reason they said no was because they didn't have enough supplies. So we tried to send some papers and crayons to Russia and Kazakhstan, but we didn't hear back."

"Thanks for trying Masha." Uncle Otabear conformed, looking as if he was trying to hide the fact that he was upset about it from her.

"Well, then we decided to do something else!" Maria announced, and Kanon and Shota gave the Kazakhstan Papers to Uncle Otabear and Uncle Hamilton.

It took them a minute to read them. Uncle Hamilton understood the Russian one right away and right after he read it, he smiled really big, then looked at Uncle Otabear. However, Uncle Otabear has his face scrunched up as if he was completely not understanding the Kazakhstan words. But uncle Hamilton whispered something to him, and Uncle Otabear had a moment of realization, and he returned Uncle Hamilton's big smile.

"Do you like it?" Ayame softly inquired, acting much shier than normal, and Uncle Hamilton quickly translated for uncle Otabek.

"It's really nice." Uncle Hamilton confirmed, still smiling.

To be perfectly honest, Yurio's first thought when Masha had brought up the whole marriage thing was a certain four-letter word that started with an F that he couldn't say out loud at an Elementary school. But when her friends handed him a red piece of paper with crayon that said:

"Russia says Yurio and otabear can get married" his slightly annoyed face turned into a big smile. This was the cutest sweetest thing in the history of the world, even cuter than the time when not quite 2-year-old Maria had run up to him at and hugged him the airport after he had come home from Skate America, all while trying to wear his old Russia sweatshirt because she missed him that much. Although when Yurio turned to see Otabek reaction, he was rather perplexed to see Otabek's face all perplexed, because he would find out later that the Kazakh paper said:

"In Kazakhstan, judges and families can claim marriage." He quickly whispered in Otabek's ear what his had said, and he breathed a sigh of understanding, then returned Yurio's smile.

"Do you like it?" Ayame, the girl with the pumpkin shirt, shyly asked him, he quickly translated for Otabek.

"It's very nice." He confirmed, still smiling, incredibly moved that these 5 year old kids would try there best to do something so nice.

"What do you think Mr.Otaber?" Kannon questioned, Then Yurio translated.

"I think it's very sweet." Otabek responded, and to Yurio, it looked as if Otabek was trying to hide that he was holding back a large wave of sadness.

"He said he loved it!" Maria cheered, in Japanese, to her friends, and they all cheered and had a group hug.

"When are you guys gonna get married? Do you wanna do it right now?" Sora, the astronaut kid, questioned.

"Not right now." Yurio hurridly decided, after all, the entire reason he and Obteak hadn't just said fuck it and did the entire marriage ceremony thing without the papers was because they wanted to wait until it was legal in Ethier Kazakstan or Russia. And while this was a very sweet gesture, it wasn't going to fix it.

"Why not?" Shota whined/inquired.

"Because they don't have a pen!" Kannon shout out, and all the children "Ooohed" in realization.

"Maybe when we get back to your apartment you guys can sign them." Maria proposed.

"We'll see." Yurio responded, ruffling her hair a little.

"We should probably go find our mommy," Shota announced, and the rest of the children agreed.

"Wait, before you guys go," Yurio called, in Japanese to Masha's friends and English to Otabek, who immediately got the message.

"どうもありがとうございました(thank you very much)!" Otabek and Yurio thanked, bowing, before the 4 other children ran off, feeling fuller and happier than they had ever felt before.


	40. Chapter 38

_November 23rd, 2023_

 _Yutopia Inn, Hasestu Japan._

Maria woke up with a jolt and knew what day it was without even checking the calendar on her wall. It had taken forever for her to fall asleep, which was very unusual for her. But how could she possibly sleep when the very next day was A. a day fo from school for Thanksgiving, and B, her birthday?! And even the early morning sun seemed to be saying "Happy Birthday Maira!", for out her window, Maria marveled at the beautiful pink, orange, and gold sunrise, that seemed to be dressing itself up for the occasion. As for her own pajamas, Maria was wearing a fuzzy long-sleeve sunshiny yellow nightgown, that had pictures of Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, And Cinderella on it. She had specially picked it out the night before because it was a tradition to open up birthday presents and eat cake in the morning while wearing pajamas if the birthday person so decided. So, of course, Maria had to pick her very favorite nightgown!

She immediately jumped out of her bed and ran over to her digital clock, with read 7:02 am, and when she saw it, nearly jumped out of pure excitement. Because Maria was usually such an early riser, it was an official rule that she had to stay in her room (unless she needed to use the bathroom) until her clock read at least 6:30 am. And 7:02 am was most definitely after 6:30 am!!!

Maria quickly grabbed Elly (Elly always liked to open presents with her), ran out the door, but was shocked to see that there was a small basket on the floor, with a note inside that read "Follow the Daisies" and when she scanned the hallway, low and behold, there was a trail of small fabric daisies!

So with the basket in one hand, and Elly in her other arm, she followed the trail of daisies, putting them into her basket as she came across them until her basket was nearly full, and the trail ended right at the sliding bamboo walls of her family's dining room. Through the thin screen, Maria could make out the shapes of Daddy, Papa, Ojisan, Obasan, Auntie Mari, and Princess, all sitting around the table, waiting for her to walk in.

"Happy Birthday Maira!" Papa cheered in Russian, Daddy, Auntie Mari, Ojiisan, Obaasan, cheered in Japanese! And while Princess couldn't speak human languages, she barked what Maria assumed was a "Happy Birthday Maria" in dog-speak.

"Thank you!" Maria thanked, smiling as wide as she could and blushing a little, after all, Ojisan was recording the whole thing on a camcorder. The normal family dining room had been completely transformed, from a really pretty place to eat food to a beautiful party scene! Yellow, Pink, and Purple streamers lined the entire room, along with glittery balloons of the same colors. On the wall facing the door, a Banner with the words "Happy Birthday Maira!" Was written in what looked at least 10 different languages, including one that looked like Kanji, one that very swirly letters, and several that had the same alphabet as English, but weren't. (One of Maria's favorite things to do was learn different languages, it completely fascinated her that she could say something that would enable her to talk to people halfway around the world.)

On the table, however, was Maira's favorite Strawberry Cake, with a yummy vanilla glaze, 6 pink, glittery candles, and little toy figures of Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, and even Peggy! (Which was just a Rubber Moana figure in a Belle dress, but Maria didn't mind.) But behind the cake was several gift-wrapped boxes and bags!!!

"Your welcome Masha!" Papa said, smiling almost as much as Maira.

"What do you want to do first, Open presents, or have some cake?" Daddy asked, but Maira already had this part all planned out.

"Cake!" She decided, which made everyone giggle.

After eating the very delicious cake, it was finally time to open up presents! There were 4 of them, 2 of which were in boxes, one of which was a good-sized pink polka-dot wrapping paper and had a purple ribbon tied on it and then ties into a bow. the other box had rainbow balloon wrapping paper and was so little it could fit in Maira's hand. One of the bags had Rapunzel on it, and purple tissue paper coming out the top. But the last bag Maira could clearly tell who it was from because it had the Russian flag on it and the tissue paper was red, white and blue. Also on each package had a big tag on it, so Maira could easily read who it was from.

"So, Maria, what do you want to open first?" Auntie Mari asked.

"The Rapunzel bag!" Maira decided and reached over the table to grab it, and when she had it in her hands, read the tag. "To Maria, From Auntie Mari." She read aloud, then turned to smile at her aunt, who smiled back. Maria gently and neatly pulled out the tissue paper and placed it beside her, and gasped when she saw what was inside.

Auntie Mari had given her a beautiful flower crown, that was covered in Daisies and beautiful rainbow butterflies!!! Maira had seen a similar one, but with orange roses and orange butterflies, one worn by a really pretty teenager with blue hair, and had fallen in love the style, but had never dreamed of actually getting one herself! And one so perfect! She quickly placed it on her head, and best of all, it fit!

"Thank you very much, Auntie Mari!" Maria thanked and scooted over to give her Auntie a big hug.

"Your welcome Maira." Auntie Maria smiled, returning her hug.

"With one do you want to open now?" Obaasan asked, looking as excited as Maira was.

"The ones with the Polka-dots!" Maira announced.

"I was hoping you'd pick that! It's from us!" Obaasan confirmed, as Maira took it and read the tag. She quickly took off the ribbon, and the wrapping paper, and was ecstatic to see her very own Japanese ceramic tea set kit, with a beautiful sakura tree painted on the teapot, and very pretty pink petals on each of the 4 cups! "Maira, I was thinking maybe later today, we could have a very fancy tea party with all your dolls!" Obaasan proposed.

"That sounds awesome! Thank you so much Obaasan and Ojisan!" Maria thanked, also giving them big hugs.

"Maira, would you like to open up the last box or the Bag?" Daddy inquired.

"The box! Is it from you?" Maira concluded, as she moved over to sit right in between of Daddy and Papa.

"Why don't you read the tag and find out?" Daddy suggested.

"Good Idea." Maira agonized, but was very surprised to see that it was from Papa! "Papa, I thought yours was the Russia one!"

"Well Masha, when you open it will make much more sense." Papa reassured, hugging her, his heart necklace rubbing against her head.

"Ok!" Maria sang, and unwrapped the small box. Underneath the wrapping paper, however, was a light blue jewelry box, witch Maria quickly popped open. And when she saw what was inside, she was so happy and overjoyed and excited that her mouth made the happy/surprised face before any sound came out. Because inside was a beautiful silver charm bracelet with 6 charms on it! One was of a rose-gold elephant, one was of a Sakura tree, another was the Japanese flag, next to it was the Russian flag, and the last one was a music note!

"Thank you, Papa!" Maria thanked, giving him a huge giant hug.

"Would you like me to put it on you?" Papa asked.

"Да!" Maira confirmed, and Papa put it on her left wrist, then Daddy grabbed the Russia gift bag for her. And to her still, surprise, the tag read that this was truly Daddy giving to her. And to her even more pleasant surprise, inside was a new Elly!!!!! She was just like the Elly on Maria's lap, but a much paler pink, fluffier, and about 15 billion times softer!

"Thank you, Daddy!" Maria thanked, giving him a big hug before hugging New Elly. But what seemed even stranger to Maira was that a strange smile spread through all the adults, like there was a really really REALLY big surprise that Maria didn't know about.

"Now Maira, I know that you like to make sure all your Dolls and Stuffies get equal amounts of love." Daddy started. Which was true, Except for Elly, witch Maria needed to sleep, she always made sure that her dolls and other stuffies got equal turns being tucked in with her at night. Although Maira could tell Daddy and Papa were definitely up to something, although she had absolutely no clue what. "Me, Papa, and your Uncle Yurio though that a good Idea to give your new Elly a lot of love would be to take her on a very special trip."

"And by pure coincidence, the Grand Prix Final is taking place in St.Petersburg this year." Papa continued.

"That's in Russia right?" Maira quizzed, starting to put together the pieces of the puzzle.

"It is In Russia. In fact, that's where your Papa grew up." Daddy confirmed.

"And Where your Dad's got Married!" Obaasan interjected, seeming to barely be able to keep from exploding of excitement.

"So we were thinking, only if you want, you could come with us to Russia?" Papa invited.

This was absolutely 100% the best! Thing!! EVER!!! In fact, Maira was too happy to even exclaim 'ДА!!!'! So instead she even more vigorously nodded her head.

"We'll be leaving on December 7th, which is in exactly 3 weeks," Papa explained, giving her a big hug. "Oh Masha, I cannot wait to show you St.Petersburg!"

Maria hugged him back, really really hard, having no other way to express how happy and excited she was to get to go with him.

I looked it up, and there is a holiday in Japan called Labour Day Thanksgiving, that does take place on her birthday.


	41. Chapter 39

_3:49 am_

 _Tuesday, December 6th, 2023_

 _Fukuoka International Airport, Fukuoka Japan_

"Alright Masha, how do you want me to do your hair?" Viktor inquired, as she, him, Yuri, Yurio, and Yuuko sat in the airport waiting at the gate. Today was the day, the day that they were flying out to St.Petersburg, and Yuri could feel the excited electricity in the air. Not only was everyone excited to see the city (both Maria and Victor were practically bouncing off the walls the second they woke up), but Yuri was excited to see his old computers again. He already knew Phichit would be there, after all, he was competing this year along with Yurio. The other 4 competitors were JJ, Emil Nekola, Jacob Bähr, and Otabek Altin. Mila and Sara Crispino-Babicheva had both qualified the women's Grand Prix final as well, and of course, we're bringing Mickey. But Yuri was glad to report that while they were still close, Sara and Mickey were no longer attached at the hip. in addition, Yuri also knew that Chris was coming out to watch, and Leo De la Iglesia, along with his little sister Isabel, who was 10, only a few years older than Maira.

"Why are you doing my hair when I'm in my Pajamas?" Maria questioned. She had picked to wear her sleeping beauty pajamas, which consisted of a long-sleeve pastel pink nightgown (with a picture of Aurora on it, of course) and fuzzy pink pajama pants underneath. She had picked them out about 30 seconds after going to target to get some special things for the trip, along with a Rainbow mini-suitcase. He had felt like the biggest hypocrite on the face of the air, and it broke his heart to tell her that she should pick something else, but he had to keep her safe. Both Viktor and Yurio had reassured him that while things still weren't good for LGBT in Russian, it was definitely better than it had been the wedding and that nobody in their right mind would target her, Yuri still had this terrible gut feeling that something on the trip was going to go terribly wrong. But of course, instead of telling little Maira all this, he had just told her that there was a slightly bigger Elephant one across the Aisle, and want to be nice to have some extra room for souvenirs?. Another thing special about this trip Viktor and Yuri had discussed it extensively, and they had decided that at some point during the trip, Viktor was going to show both Maria and Yuri the neighborhood where he grew up. That was mostly what was worrying Yuri about the trip, because even though it had been over a decade since Viktor had originally left the neighborhood, he had left as soon as he came out, and the reaction had not been good. In fact, they hadn't even taken the risk when the pair was in St.Petersburg for the wedding. But even though Yuri wasn't 100% sure it was a good idea, it was only fair, and once Viktor set his mind to something there was no stopping him.

"You don't have to have anything in your hair, Masha, but if we don't brush it out now, then it will hurt to brush it out by the time we get to Russia." Viktor nurturing explained. A few days before, Yuri and he had nailed down a solid plan for Maria and the airport. She had never flown before and had never traveled to a different time zone, much less one 5 hours behind, so to try and combat the inevitable jet lag, the two das had decided that they would do everything they could to get Maria to sleep on the plane. The first face of that plan was already in motion, which was to wake her up about 15 minute before they had to leave, enough time for her to change into her sleeping beauty pyjamas and do things such as brush her teeth, and do a final check to make sure they had everything, but not long enough to let Maira fully wake up. They had also completed phase two, which was run Maria out of her 'I'm-leaving-the-county-for-the-first-time-ever-and-going-to-see-where-Papa-grew up-and-see-uncle-hamilton-skate-and-meet-all-the-skate-friends" energy by using foolproof tactics, such as having her run laps around the giant rows of empty chairs in the gate, or having everyone go one at a time to get breakfast and such, and have Maira join every single one of them. The last phase was now in effect, which was to keep Maira just awake enough to function, but sleepy enough to have her sleep on the plane to Shanghai, with would give her enough sleep to be fully awake and hopefully be able to quickly recover from the inevitable jet lag.

"That makes sense," Maira replied, starting to yawn. "Can you do the french braid places?" She requested, fading fast.

"Of course, sweetheart." Viktor accepted, and she turned with her back facing him, and he took a brush and carefully brushed out her Waist-long hair. Viktor loved having Maira's hair long, Yuri could tell. She had gotten his magical hair, never ever tangled hair, just in Yuri's color.

"How many planes are we going on again?" Maria inquired, and Viktor's nimble fingers brushed her hair and separated it down her part.

"3," Viktor explained, as he took three sections of silky black hair and began to braid. "The first one is going to very short and is going to Shanghai China. Then we're going to stay in the airport for about 2 hours, so we can eat breakfast and you can get dressed in your pretty yellow dress you picked last week. They were going on the longest flight which is going to be 10 hours."

"That's about the same amount of time as from when you wake up to when you go to school." Yurio clarified, yawning himself. "That planes going to Almaty, Kazakhstan."

"That's where Uncle Otabear is!" Maria cheered, as Viktor took a pink hair tie and ties off the first braid.

"Да," Viktor giggled. "The layover in Almaty is only a half hour, so we'll meet him at the gate, which is another special waiting area like this."

"ARe you and Uncle Otabear going to kiss?" Maira asked Yurio, who smiled back at her.

"WE'll see Masah." He replied, then went back to looking for his Instagram feed.

"And Finally, after about a 5-hour flight from Almaty, we'll land in St.Petersburg!" Viktor cheered, as he tied off her second, waist length french braid.

"YAY! YAY! YAY!" Maria cheered, and got up and jumped around out of excitement. "I can't wait to see all the twirly skaters in real life!"

"And I can't wait to show you the city." Viktor smiled, pulling her in for a hug.

"Attention everyone." A loud, feminine sounding voice boomed over the loudspeaker. "Flight 527 from Gate E to Shanghai has been delayed an hour due to weather conditions. We apologize for the inconvenience."

After hearing the news, and seeing Maria sit down in the chair and Yawn, Viktor, Yuri, Yurio, and Yuuko looked into each other eyes and both shared a streak of pure panic. Thankfully, it wouldn't mess up any of their layovers, but If Maira fell asleep BEFORE she got on the plane, then she wouldn't sleep AT ALL. And when Maria got overtired, she had the tendency to get cranky and a bit weepy. Now, right now, would be the most ferocious race against the clock that any of them had ever practiced in, Keeping a tired child awake in an airport.

Yuuko had the most experience in this field, so she took the first attempt. "Hey Maira," She called, in Japanese, "Want to come with me to go get some TEa from Starbucks. We can even get you a peppermint hot chocolate with lots of whipped cream!"

"But they didn't have the hot chocolate when I went with Uncle Hamilton." Maria pointed out. "They said they only had it at the big one at the other end of the international part of the airport."

"Exactly! The plane is coming for a while now." Yurio picked up. "And you should probably put Elly back in your bag so she doesn't get Hot chocolate on her."

"Ok." Maria sighed and put Elly in her bag. "Can Rapunzel Barbie come? She loves to explore."

"Of course!" Yuuko allowed, and Maria took out her barbie and took Yuuko's' hand, and the two of them walked out of sight and earshot.

"Nice one." Viktor complimented, as he packed up the hairbrush and hair ties in his carry on.

"If you want Masha to stay awake, then having her stuffed animal he sleeps with every night out or sitting down isn't going to help your cause." Yurio arrogantly explained, clearly irritable from the early morning.

"Ok, what's the plan?" Viktor asked.

"I have no idea," Yuri admitted, internally freaking out. It would take anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes for Yuuko to get back with Maria, and they had already exhausted all of their running around games. "We could always try doing one of the board games we bought for the Shanghai layover?"

"That's going to have to work." Viktor sighed. "It's not optimal, but hopefully the shorter Shanghai layover will eliminate the need for as much entertainment."

"As long as I don't have to play one of your stupid kid games, that works for me," Yurio growled

20 minutes later, Yuuko returned with Maira and her hot chocolate, Yuri, Viktor, and Yurio got a scope of how bad the situation truly was. She completely ignored the setup of the board games, even Jenga, her favorite. Maira's head was starting to get heavy, and she was yawning and rubbing her eyes every 30 seconds. In fact, she was so tired that if she did as much as sit down she would fall right asleep, and therefore be a zombie the entire rest of the trip.

"That's it," Yurio grumbled, shoving his phone into his pocket and getting up. "We're going to explore."

"But I'm sleepy." Maira protested, making her way over to her backpack on one of the blue tables.

"But hey, you've never been in an airport before! Exploring sounds like a fun idea!" Yuri hurriedly backed up, taking her attention away from the seat.

"But I wanna sit down." Maria sleepy declared.

"Masha, your Uncle is going, and we need someone to keep an eye on him so he doesn't get himself into trouble," Viktor explained, praying that this would work because otherwise, they would all be toast.

Maria took a deep sigh. "Ok Uncle Hamilton. We can explore for a little bit." She commanded, in an imitation of her Fathers' voices, which of course, made Viktor and Yuri almost laugh out loud.

 _4:28 am_

 _GPF Group Chat 2k23_

Me: Viktor why did you give the group chat a name?

Washington: Why should it not have a name?

Pork Cutlet Bowl: Yurio, is everything alright?

Me: I was just going to let you guys know that I have single-handedly saved your asses from a cranky Zombie child 

Okaasan: Yourachka that's great! What did you do?

Me: I found a Musical Staircase near the McDonalds

Washington: we love you so much 

Pork Cutlet bowl: We totally owe you one

Me: Change the group chat title to something reasonable

 _Washington has changed the group chat title to "Something reasonable"_

Me: Fuck you

Viktor: Hey, thats Yuri's job!

Pork Cutlet Bowl: Viktor!!!

Yurio let out a deep, aggravated sigh, and started recording a video, trying to not let Masha see him do it, but he knew it wouldn't be an issue. When they were 'exploring' they had heard some weird music, and of course decided to check it out. And to their delight, it had been a set of Musical stairs! The way they worked was that they had sensors and speakers on either side of each step, so that when you stepped on them(or jumped down them, in Maria's case), a koto note would play, well, at least that's how it was for the first 16 steps. The second set of 16 stairs played different animal sounds, the third set 16 stairs played different types of drum beats and the fourth and last set of 16 played different types of digital music.(Maira had counted the number of each stair set carefully) Currently, Maira was on the first set of stairs, trying to see if she could play a song.

"Hey, Uncle Hamilton! What's your skating song called again?" Masha called, the Koto's music getting lower as she bounced down the stairs to talk to him.

"My short program is Ruby, by 21 Pilots," Yurio informed.

"Is that the one where you where the pink and yellow and blue gradient outfit that me and Esuko help design?" Maira questioned further.

"Да," Yurio confirmed. His theme for his programs this year was Inspirations, so the song and having the two child inspirations in his life design is custom made total sense. Although Etsuko wasn't a child anymore, in fact, she was 16 and had her own successful Etsy shop. His free program was too Hurricane and was meant to represent all the older inspirations in his life, such as Okaasan and Viktor, and even some more spiteful ones, such as Yakov and Plisetskaya.

"Look at this then!" Maira declared and ran back over to the Koto part of the stairs. "Now presenting Uncle Hamilton for Japan!" She announced while Yurio did his very best not to laugh and shake the camera. "He will be skating to Ruby, performed by Maria Nikiforova!" And with that, Masha jumped between two stairs, switching steps every word.

"Bravo Masha!" Viktor clapped, as he causality strolled over.

"Hey, Viktor." Yurio nonchalantly greeted, stopping the recording. "You absolutely owe me one for doing this."

"We really do. Thanks a lot." Viktor thanked, as Maria ran over to give him a hug.

"Hi, Papa!" She greeted. "Wanna see a trick I learned?"

"Of course Masha!" Viktor sweetly answered, as she mad-dashed up the stairs, the proceeded to jump all the way down 64 steps, setting all kinds of music off. "That looks like fun!" Viktor commentated, as she finished.

"Come on Papa! Come jump with me!" She offered, taking his hand and bringing him to the staircase.

"If you insist!" Viktor giggled, and the two of them Bounced up and down the stairs until a loudspeaker voice boomed:

"Attention everyone. Flight 527 from gate E to Shanghai will be boarding in 15 minutes. Please make your way to the gate."


	42. Chapter 40

_8:29pm (20:29)_

 _St.Petersburg Official Hotel_

 _December 7th, 2023_

Maira had slept the entire plane ride to Shanghai, and even some on the plane to Almaty, but she still felt tired. Papa had called it Jet-Lag, and it seemed to be effect Maira most. Uncle Hamilton and Auntie Yuuko seemed completely unfazed, probably because they were always flying to other competitions. Papa and Daddy seemed to be pretty awake too, but Maira suspected that Papa was so energetic because they were in St.Petersburg. Apparently, this was the first time he and Daddy had been to Russia since they had gotten married. They had met up with Uncle Otabear and his coach in Almaty as planned, but to Maira's confusion and disappointment, they didn't kiss or hold hands or even or hug or do ANYTHING that would other people know they were together. In fact, Daddy and Papa hadn't even held hands since they had all landed in St.Petersburg, despite the fact they ALWAYS held hands at home. But the strangeness of the situation was pushed to the back of Maria's mind when someone opened the door to the hotel.

The lobby of the official Hotel was most definitely the biggest, fanciest, and most exciting room Maria had ever been in. The white ceiling seemed to be as high up as the sky and was covered in beautiful murals that depicted things that Maira could not exactly make out. The floors were a slick, birch hardwood, but had an intracity embroiled bure carpet that went from the double doors to the front desk, which was made out of a very pretty mahogany. The walls were a beautiful royal red, with breathtaking fancy white windows that had red cushioned seats on them, along with pillows with the Hotel's logo.

Speaking of the outside, Maria was very glad to be INSIDE. Now, Daddy and Papa and Uncle Hamilton had all told her that Russia was much much much much colder than Japan, and it was that Maria did not believe them, but nothing could have prepared her for THAT level of cold. Speaking of barely surviving, The second hey had landed in St.Petersburg, Uncle Hamilton had nearly been eaten alive the biggest crowd of rabid girls in cat ears Maira had ever seen. A slightly smaller crowd of people had tried to devour Papa and Daddy, asking questions, wanting autographs, and taking pictures. A crowd had even approached HER, but Papa had picked her up and saved her from the swarm once a strange man tried to get right up in her face and take a picture, but Papa picked her up before anything else could happen. Papa called them Paparazzi and explained to her that they didn't mean to make her upset, they were just very excited to see her. Although when Papa put her down, Daddy told her that they probably weren't going to go away, if the paparazzi ever made her feel uncomfortable again to just let them know.

When Papa finished checking them all in, they left the lobby and to a pretty Elevator. It was too small to hold all 7 of them, plus their luggage, so Uncle Hamilton, Auntie Yuuko, Uncle Otabear, and his coach went in first. And when the next elevator opened, Maria did a happy dance, because inside was Uncle Phichit!!!

"YURI!!!" Phichit squealed, running to give Daddy a hug. "It's been WAAYYY TO LONG!!!"

"Yea." Daddy giggled, hugging back. "It much better seeing you in person than on Facetime." Every Saturday, Daddy, and Papa facetimed a different one of their skater friends. Maria had always been given the option to join them and didn't usually take them up on the offer. But ever since she had found out she was going to St.Petersburg, she had been on every single call. So far, she had FaceTimed with Uncle Phichit, Uncle Chris and his Husband Uncle, Uncle Guang-Hong, and Aunties Sara and Mila.

"Hello, Phichit! How have you been?" Papa greeted, and Uncle Phichit broke his hug with Daddy in favor of one with Papa.

"Great! I'm sososososoSO excited to see you all again!! The last time I think we all were actually together in the same room was -" Uncle Phichit started, before breaking his hug with Papa and kneeling down in front of Maria, and giving her a hug of her own.

"สวัสดีลุงพิจิตร! คุณเป็นอย่างไร?" (Hello Uncle Phichit! How are you?) Maira slowly asked. When they had FaceTimed, he had taught her some basic Thai.

"ดีขอบคุณ. และคุณ?" Uncle Phichit slowly responded, smiling.

Maira just nodded her head and smiled, completely forgetting what that meant, but not wanting to be rude.

"Its ok if you don't remember!" Uncle Phichit comforted. "That's was really really awesome for having only learned it 2 weeks ago!

"Thanks, Uncle Phichit." Maira thanked, still a little mad at herself for not remembering. "Wait a minute!" She exclaimed, remembering the other thing she had wanted to show him.

"That's cool," Phichit confirmed, and broke the hug and took out his phone, which allowed her to take off her carry-on backpack. Maria opened up the biggest pocket, took Little Elly right out, and showed her to Uncle Phichit. Daddy and Papa had told her the story of how Uncomfortable Phichit had gotten her Big Elly on the day she was born.

"This is Little Elly." Maria introduced. "She's the same kind of Elly as Big Elly. Daddy and Papa gave her to me for my Birthday, and they put a Yellow ribbon on her neck so they could tell her apart from her big sister. And Big Elly told her all about you, so Little Elly wanted to say Hello!"

Since Little Elly couldn't talk, She waved to Uncle Phichit, with a little help from Maria.

"Hello, Little Elly!" Uncle Phichit greeted, taking her hand and Shaking it. "It's very nice to meet you."

Little Elly whispered something in Maria's ear, so Maria translated. "She says it's very nice to meet you too."

"I'm really sorry Maria, but we have to get going," Daddy called. "We can always talk to Uncle Phichit tomorrow though."

"Ok!" Maira confirmed and Gave Uncle Phichit a hug goodbye. "See you tomorrow!

"See you tomorrow Maria. It was nice meeting you little Elly!" Uncle Phichit said, as he got up and walked away. However, the Nikiforovs had barely gotten out of the elevator when they ran into another one of their old friends.

"Hey, Chris!" Papa greeted, as they saw the tall, blond man walk down the hallway.

"Hey Viktor, Yuri, Marguerite!" Uncle Chris replied, turning around. He whispered something in French to his husband, and his husband walked away, while Uncle Chris walked over to the family.

"Hi, Chris." Daddy sheepishly responded, running his ring hand through his hair.

"Fancy seeing you three here." Uncle Chris chuckled, in a heavy Swiss accent. "Where are the others?"

"We ran into Phichit when we left the lobby, so Yurio, Yuuko, Otabek, and Niyazov went up to their rooms," Papa explained.

"Makes sense." Uncle Chris accepted, before bending down to Talk to Maira, and outreaching his hand. "And it's a pleasure to finally meet you in person, Marguerite."

Maira shook his hand. When they had facetimed, she had told him that Daisies were her favorite flower, and he had given her nickname Marguerite, which meant Daisy in French. "Thanks, Uncle Chris. It's nice to meet you too."

"I can remember when Your Papa and I got together before my first Grand Prix final." Uncle Chris began while sighing and flashing a mischievous smile. "It took place in Houston Texas, didn't it Viktor?"

"Да." Papa sighed, with an exasperated undertone, knowing exactly how this story ended.

"I was 18 at the time, and your Papa was 21." Uncle Chris continued. "It was the night everyone was arriving, and I had won gold at Skate Canada."

"We had a bet that whichever of us won the gold could make the other do anything for them at Grand Prix Final." Papa hurriedly interjected, his cheeks getting very pink. "Chris had beaten me by 2 points, but I won the gold in the Final. And for some obscure reason he wanted me to go to the biggest Walmart in Houston at 3 in the morning. So I went in and came right out. Story over."

"No no no." Uncle Chris corrected, laughing. "I waited outside the front doors, and was talking a video, when not even 2 minutes later, you run out screaming!"

"It's not Funny." Papa tried to cover up. "How was I supposed to know that someone hadn't decapitated a snowman and put on the top of a Christmas tree as some sort of cult offering?!"

"Oh, that thing!" Another man shouted, walking out of door. He had ear-length brown hair, tan skin, and was wearing a yellow sweatshirt with jeans and sneakers. "It's not your fault Viktor, it does look like Cult sacrifice!"

"Thank you, Leo!" Papa applauded, quickly trying to get off the subject.

"Talk to you soon!" Chris exited, catching up with his husband then going out of sight.

"NO problem Viktor! So glad we ran into you!" Leo chatted, as a girl strolled out of the elevator and went right beside him. He smiled at her, then turned to the rest of the family "Everyone, this is my little Sister, Isabel!

Isabel was only a little taller than Maira. She had tank skin, a diamond face, and brown eyes so dark they were nearly black. Her loose curls went down to her shoulders and were held back with a red headband. She was wearing a purple coat, her own pair of sneakers, and jeans with hand-applicated plastic diamonds.

"Hi, Isabel!" Maira waved. "I'm Maria Nikiforova, and I'm 6 years old."

"Hi, Maria!" Isabel shot back, with a big smile on her face. "I'm 10, and I made these jeans myself. I'm really excited to see the Junior Grand Prix final because I'm training for the junior division. I should be able to enter in about 3 years."

"You do ice skating too?!" Maria gasped. "My Uncle Hamilton is teaching me how to figure skate. He's competing in the normal Grand Prix Final, but he said that if I ever wanted to do any emotions or anything then he would help me out."

"That's Awesome!" Isabel Cheered. "Leo's been my coach, but he retired a few years ago."

"How about during the competition, we all find seats next to each other?" Daddy suggested. "I really hate to break this conversation up, but we were supposed to be in our room a half hour ago and Yurio is texting me no-stop."

"Whats your room number?" Leo asked.

"X73." Daddy answered, and gestured to the end of the Hallway.

"Our room is X82, right?!" Isabel shouted, turning to her brother who nodded. "Hey, Maria wanna race to the rooms?!"

"YEA!" Maira cheered, and with that, the two girls ran to the end of the hallway, their friendship developing as fast as they ran.


	43. Chapter 41

Happy New Year everyone!! Thank you all so much for reading and your patience and being all around the best readers anyone could ask for!!! In the New Year, I will be implementing some new things to try and make my posting schedule a bit more consistent. So starting now, I'm going to be posting new chapters around 6 pm (18:00) EST on Sundays. Thank you all so much again for reading and I hope you all have a happy new year!!!

 _7:28 am_

 _St.Petersburg Official Hotel_

 _December 8th, 2023_

Yurio awoke to the sound of the door opening, followed by slightly muffled soft footsteps. He looked over at his phone, and when he saw the time looked over at Masha and smiled.

"Good morning Masha." He greeted, still not getting out of his bed, by shifting over to allow her and her giant bundle of blankets to get in. The hotel had given the group of five two rooms, one a little bigger with 3 single beds, and the smaller a full size and a twin, connected by a shared closet. From what Yurio assumed, the hotel intended for the party to be split into hotel rooms by gender. While this wasn't the first time that Hotels had done something like this, it was the first time he had experienced a hotel blatantly try and out a child in a separate room than their parents, which was, of course, was diverted from the fact that Yuri and Viktor were married. Little jabs of prejudice like that pissed off Yurio the most because the cowardly bastards could play it off as a mistake. Didn't make yurio want to fight them any less. They, of course, had done some rearranging, ending up with yurio in the bed meant for a literal child. He had ended up falling asleep cursing the fact that even though he was a 22-year-old man, to his eternal fury, puberty had done nothing to change his build, with the exception of adding 7 measly centimeters to his final height.

"Thanks for letting us come hang out with you." Mahsa appreciated, rolling herself onto the bed, giving both of them enough space.

"No problem, your Dads could use the sleep. Who did you bring this time?" Yurio inquired, knowing enough about his niece that she never traveled alone.

"Just Little Elly. Nobody else would fit." Masha explained. "Little Elly did tell me that she wanted to bring the Ipad, so I let her carry it."

"Was it cold for you last night?" Yurio wondered. Not that he would ever admit it to anyone, but he had even cocooned himself in the covers the night before, so he could barely imagine what it would be like for a 6-year-old who had grown up in a place with walls that actually functioned in keeping out the cold, unlike his childhood home with Plisetskaya.

Да." Maira admitted. "It was hard to fall asleep though. Papa said it was time to go to bed but my head said it was time to stay awake."

"Jet lag will do that to you." Yurio sympathized. The jet lag would mostly hit I'm in the beginning of the season, and by the Grand Prix final, he was usually immune.

"I can't wait for today!!!" Masha whisper-exclaimed. "Last night Papa said today we going to go to his old neighborhood and see where he grew up and we were going to have lunch in the diner he liked to have Dinner in when he was my age!

"Wait what?!" Yurio gasped sitting right up. Was Viktor insane?! He had told everyone that he was taking Masha around the city, but had regretted to inform them that he was going to take is 6-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER TO THE SAME PLACE HE HAD BEEN KICKED OUT OF 10 YEARS PRIOR!!!

"That's just what he said." Masha reiterated, shrugging her shoulders and opening the Disney emoji game she loved.

"I'll be back." Yurip hurriedly excused, hiding his bubbling anger and he got up and marched towards the door.

"Back for more, I will turn the pride and win the war." He heard Masha softly sing to herself as he entered Viktor's room and shut the door.

"ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS?!" He screamed, waking Vikor and the Japanese Yuri up abruptly.

"Yurio, what's wrong?" Viktor grumbled, sitting up.

"Not much, except for the fact that you're taking my niece into a death trap." Yurio sarcastically commented.

"I don't see how showing Maria around a bit is a death trap. We were just going to take a taxi to a diner and I was going to point out things along the way." He defend.

"Does Not change the fact that the diner is run by a bunch of Homophones with no problem throwing around certain words I don't want Masha hearing!" Yurio raged.

"Do you really think I don't plan this out beforehand?!" Viktor fumed, the early wake-up call plus the insult to his pride making him more irritable than ever. "I've been checking every day for two weeks, and the diner has the pride flag in the window!"

That was Yurio's final Boiling point. In that moment, he forgot how thin the walls were, and even more important, his promise to himself to never, under any circumstances, to yell in front of Masha. "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW DANGEROUS THOSE PLACES ARE?! HAVING THE PRIDE FLAG IN THE WINDOW DOESN'T MAKE A PLACE A HEAVEN LIKE IT SUGGESTS! IN FACT, IT'S JUST A CALLING CARD FOR HOMOPHOBIC BASTARDS TO COME AND TARGET PEOPLE!!"

With that, however, the Japanese Yuri looks, in fear, at Viktor, then at Yurio. "rEally?" He meekly asked.

"Дa, really," Yurio confirmed, sounding a bit more condescending aloud that he had planned. "The first time I completed the Rostelecom Cup after I started shaking for Japan Okaasan and I went into one of those cafes with the flag, and the woman sitting next to us looked Okaasan in the face and casually asked her how she was coping with her son being a-"

"First of all, that was 4 years ago," Viktor interjected. "Second, do you really think that people would target a celebrity family with a 6-year-old?"

"OF COURSE I DO! WHY THE HELL WOULD I BE SCREAMING-" Yurio shrieked, before remembering that Masha could most definitely hear him. "-If I didn't think this would be an issue? The whole celebrity protection goes right out the window when you are outside of the main tourist attractions."

The Japanese Yuri sighed and gave shot Vikor a concerned expression. "Maybe we should just have the taxi drive through the neighborhood completely, and then we could go somewhere like the Petroff place." He suggested. "Yurio's right, it would be safer, and I think Maira would like going to a Princess castle a lot more."

"I'm not saying you can never go back to your old neighborhood ever again" Yurio reasoned. "I'm just saying that taking Maria there would be equivalent to going into battle with Charles Lee."

Viktor forlornly looked put at the rising sun, then at his husband, then directly into Yurio's eyes. "How sure are you?"

"Surer than anything in my life," Yurio confirmed.

The Japanese Yuri put his arm around Viktor, giving him a look of please-for-the-love-of-all-things-good-listen-to-yurio. That was the final ingredient for bursting Viktor's bubble. Viktor's tears was all the proof Yurio needed to know he had successfully done the impossible, Change Viktor's mind.

"Hey, if you want, I could take Masha for a few hours after I'm done with my practice and bring her somewhere touristy so you two could have a chance to go." Yurio offered, trying to brighten the somber mood.

"Нет." Viktor refused. "That's very kind of you, but the woke reason we brought Masha was to spend time with her in the city. We will all go together."

Maria stood in the toy section of the warmly lit gift shop of Petrof Palace. After her birthday, Daddy and Papa had started paying her to do things like set the table, help make dinner, and stuff like that, so she could have enough money to get a souvenir from Russia. She had saved up enough money to get 1 set of fancy authentic Matryoshka dolls, the ones made out of soft wood that could fit inside each other. Now the only problem was picking what to get. She was between 2 sets of Matryoshka dolls, and while they were all stacked inside Of each other, the boxes had very helpful pictures detailing what each doll looked like.

The first set she was deciding between had 7 dolls, and each one was a member of the last Royal Family in Russia. Papa had taught her all their names, but Maria only remembered the names of the Princesses, Olga, Tatiana, Anastasia, and her new Favorite, Maria. They had all lived together in Petrof Palace over 100 years ago, and as far as Maria knew, where the last people who had ever lived there. She had even gotten to see Old Princess Maria's room! Although Papa had also said they weren't technically princesses, Grand Duchesses, with Uncle Hamilton clarified, were for all intents and purposes, the same thing as princesses.

The biggest doll was the Papa, or as Papa explained to Maira, the Tzar. He was painted in a really fancy red outfit that had all kinds of ribbons and medals and an exquisite crown, along with a mustache. Inside of him was the Mama or Tzarina. She was also painted in red, but instead of a shirt, she had a beautifully embroidered dress. Inside of her was the 4 Princess/Grand Duchesses, in order of how old they were. Unlike their parents, the sisters were all in the same outfit, formal yellow dresses with blue and white necklaces Maira assumed to be sapphires and pearls. The smallest doll, who didn't have anything inside him, was the Prince, Alexei. Papa had told her that he had a special Russian royal name too, but Maira didn't remember it. He was wearing an outfit similar to the Papa's outfit, but without all the medals and the crown.

While that set was very pretty, Maria couldn't NOT consider the set right next to it. Instead of 7 dolls, this one had 12, and each was painted to look like a Disney Princess!!! The biggest one was Snow White, followed by Cinderella, then Sleeping Beauty, Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Pocahontas, Mulan, Tiana, Rapunzel, Merida, and finally, Moana. And the best part was that each princess was painted in the style of all the pretty art in the Place and in clothes inspired by the Russian Princess/Grand Duchesses!!!

"Maria?" Daddy called, clicking her out of the discussion-making trance. "Maria, are you ok?"

"Yea, I'm just trying to decide." She replied, turning to face him.

"Can I Help? Maybe a second set of eyes will help." Daddy suggested, kneeling down to see what was in her Vantage point.

"Sure!" Maria exclaimed. "I'm trying to pick between the Disney Princess ones over there, and the ones that look like the family who used to live here."

"That's a hard choice!" Daddy acknowledged, and looked at both sets.

"Which one should I buy?" Maria asked him. Daddy would be able to figure this out. "I only have enough money to get 1."

"Well, Maira, That's up to you." Daddy replied, smiling at her. "Personally, I like each one for different reasons. I like the Romanov set because it's historical, but I also like the Princess set because it's very creative."

"I know." Maria sighed, no closer to making a decision than she was 20 minutes ago.

"And both sets come with their own Challenges." Daddy continued. "While the Princess set does have More dolls, it's going to be hard to keep track of all of them. The Romanov dolls, on the other hand, will be harder to learn all their names."

"I can remember their names!" Maria affirmed.

"I didn't think it would be a problem." Daddy smiled. "Are you any closer to a decision?"

Maria shook her head. "They're both pretty."

Daddy though for a minute. "Do you want to know what I do when I need to make a decision?"

"はい(Yes)," Maria answered.

"I imagine myself picking up one of the things and leaving the store. If I feel upset about leaving the other thing behind, then I pick the other." Daddy told her.

Thi ing it was an excellent Idea, Maria closed her eyes and imagined herself picking up the Disney Princess Set, paying for it at the counter, and leaving the store, and Just like Daddy said, she felt upset about leaving the Romanov set. "I decided!" She cheered.

"Who is coming home with us?" Daddy inquired, smiling.

"The Romanov ones!" Maira decided, grabbing the box from the shelf. "Thank you for helping!"

"Your welcome Maira." Daddy smiled, hugging her.

"What did I miss?" Uncle Hamilton greeted, strolling up to Maria, Daddy, and Maira's new Dollies, with a set of paints in hand.

"I picked what Matryoshka dollies to buy!" Maira filled in, giving Uncle Hamilton a hug. "They are the People who used to live in this Castle! I was deciding between them and those really pretty Disney Princess dolls, but I picked these ones."

"They're beautiful!" Papa exclaimed, coming up behind Uncle Hamilton, with a box of fancy-looking tea.

"Thanks, Papa! Why do you have Tea? I thought you liked coffee better." Maira inquired.

"I was picking it up for your Auntie Mari," Papa explained, taking Maria's hand. "You know how much she loves tea."

"Yea," Maria remembered, and the party of 11 (Maira, Daddy, Papa, Uncle Hamilton, and her 7 new Dollies) made their way to the front Cashier.

"And I'm picking up these paints for Esuko." Uncle Hamilton added, seeming to read Maira's mind. "Everywhere I go in the world I always grab her a set of paint. She liked to see the differences in the consistencies and pigments and stuff and so far the Russian ones have been her favorite."

"Estuko is in High School, Right?" Daddy wondered.

"Да" Uncle Hamilton responded. "She also has her own Etsy shop where she sells her paintings. I swear, she's going to end up in a museum one day, she's that talented."

Uncle Hamilton's smile and pride talking about Estuko made Maira feel funny. It wasn't that she was upset exactly, Estuko was a REALLY good painter, more like Maria now wanted to go to an Ice Rink right exactly now and show Uncle Hamilton how good she was at figure skating.

"Speaking of talent," Papa interjected, then looked right at Maria in a serious tone. "Tomorrow starts the Grand Prix, and Masha, I want you paying close attention to the skaters, especially Mila and the other female ones. And when we get home, you can tell us if competitions are something you would be interested in trying."

"Really?!" Maria gasped. Both Daddy and Papa had done competitions, along with Uncle Hamilton, but She had never been asked about wanting to do completions herself before!

"Really." Papa smiled. "But only if you really want too."

"I can't wait to see the skaters tomorrow now!!" Maira exclaimed, the excitement filling her up as if someone was pouring hot cocoa into a glass with a candy cane and whipped cream and marshmallows and rainbow sprinkles on top!


	44. Chapter 42

Hi everyone! Just a quick preface, I don't really know all that much about figure skating terms of choreographing routines and such, so if I mess that up, please forgive me. Also, I don't own the song I have to go along with the program, so please please please please please please please don't hate me. Thank you all so much for reading I love you all!!!

 _7:00 pm (19:00)_

 _Urmanov Ice Rink, St.Petersburg Russia_

 _December 9th, 2023_

The second Maira woke up on December 9th, 2023, she could feel the electricity in the air. Although at first, it was only a small hum, a murmur just loud enough to let her know that today was going to be extra special, but not loud enough to distract her from her chocolate chip pancakes with a smiley face out of syrup. The hum grew louder though, and as Maira put on her red sparkly dress with a full skirt and long sleeves, she could almost feel the energy caught up in her hair. The electrically exploded, however, when she was bundled up in about 15 layers of coats and such. Somehow, the electricity today was different than the one of last night, where she had seen Uncle Hamilton and Uncle Phichit did their own short programs. Currently, Uncle Hamilton was in first place, only 2 points ahead of Uncle Phichit. While she obviously wants Uncle Hamilton to win his 5th consecutive gold medal, a small voice inside her told her to root for Uncle Phichit. After all, he had never won, and even though he kept insisting he didn't care if he won, Maria couldn't imagine that Uncle Phichit was REALLY ok with just silver.

The Surge of electricity followed Maria to her seat. The stadium rink was nothing like Ice Castle, it had stadium seats that seemed to scrape the sky, and could seat the entire town of Hasestu. Thankfully, her seat was the same as last night, at the very tippy top, giving her the perfect view of the ice, and the giant jumbotron in the middle of the arena. There were royal blue billboards everywhere, all of with reading the name of Ice Rink, and the fact that it was St.Petersburg. All of the advertisements were in Russian, but Maria could hear dozens of different languages all around her.

"Up First is Mila Babicheva, age 25, from Russia." A male voice over the loudspeaker announced, taking Maira's ears off of the languages and putting her eyes on the ice. "She is skating to On the Floor. Her theme this year is 'Celebration'. This season marks her 6th since she Hired her coach, Danica Slavik, who she hired immediately after the Plisetsky controversy, and Moved her home rink to the Czech Republic, refusing to go back to Russia until, in her words, the RSA allows her former rink mate back where he belongs.

"What does Controversy mean?" Maria quickly asked Uncle Hamilton. "And what does it have to do with you?"

"A bunch of people was stupid before you were born." Unche hamilton huffed, and Maria knew she shouldn't press the issue further right now. After all, Mila skated out to the middle of the rink, as people started to hold up Russian flags and posters they had made. Mila herself was wearing a short Silver Skater dress costume, with a simple short skater skirt, sheer sleeves with an ombre of sparkling sequins, and lines of more sequin creating a necklace-looking effect.

The music started off some slow electric piano, a woman's voice sang some English lyrics that Maria couldn't quite make out over the loudspeaker, with a male's voice interjecting a bit at the beginning. While the woman sang the first lines of the song, Mila did a corkscrew spin that started off slow, like the singing but got increasing fast as she went on, as if she was charging herself up.

The spin stopped 16 seconds later when the music reached its peak speed, the beat dropped, and the man's voice took over and began doing the kinds-singing thing that the people did in Hamilton. Mila however, was doing a perfectly executed step sequence. Although it wasn't like any step sequence Maria Had ever seen. Most of the skaters she had watched, including Uncle Hamilton, seemed to be taking their inspiration directly from Ballet. But Mila, on the other hand, seemed to be taking her step sequence from another style of dance, one that was very fast and seemed to have been made for the song. Although she seemed to care more about getting every single move perfect rather than jamming moves into the song to match the speed, which was absolutely the right call.

The re-entry of the woman's voice caused Mila to do jump right from her sequence into a double Axel, then go straight into a flying sit spin. The light reflecting off of her glittering costume seemed to act as a disco ball, which perfectly reflected Maria's fixed gaze on the female skater. Once Mila had finished her spin, she popped up right to triple loop. Her transitions were flawless, after all, Maira knew Mila was known for putting jumps about .0358237 seconds after spins and NOT falling. After that jump, she went back to more choreography, and Maira couldn't blame her. Even though she isn't showing any outward signs of fatigue, Mila had to be tired after all that, right?

But somehow, miraculously, against all logic, when the Man's voice came back in, and they sang about different cities around the world, Mila went from her sequence into a double Salchow-double luz combination, which like the rest of her program, was performed absolutely perfectly. Unlike Uncle Hamilton, Mila took thing a bit simple, but everything she did was at such a level of perfection that nobody could take their eyes off her.

As the Man's voice faded away, and the woman's voice got slower, Mila went into her combination spin. From what Maria could tell, it went from a corkscrew to a Biellmann spin, to a death drop spin, and ending the whole thing with a sit spin.

Maria would never know how the heck Mila was able to summon up the energy to complete the rest of her program, which consisted of a short choreographic sequence, but she did know one thing for certain. Something about Miley's performance had lit a spark inside her, a spark she had never before felt. A spark that provoked an impulsive thought that screamed GET ON THE ICE RIGHT NOW AND FIGURE OUT HOW TO DO THAT.

And Mila Babovich would never know that it was her gold medal-winning performance that lit the competitive fire inside Maria Nikiforova, a fire that would eventually come to change the world.


	45. Chapter 43

Hi Everybody!!!! I am SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO sorry for not posting a chapter in over a month!!!! I was having some extreme writer's block, and my personal life has been super stressful, so I haven't had the time or energy to write anything that I thought was worthy to put out. I just want to thank everybody so very much for taking the time to deal with all of my insanity and I just want to let you know that I do have the next chapter in the works, so it should be out within the next two weeks, and I love you all and thank you so much for reading!!!!!!

11:42 am

Tuesday, January 16th, 2024

Hasestu Castle

Yurio Plisetsky walked into Hasestu Castle, silently cursing the Japanese Yuri for apparently being too sick to teach his own damn skating class. He has texted Yurio that morning, asking if he could cover the class, and that it was one time thing and he would totally make it up to him and that he was really only just supervised because the kids already know what to do and all that crap, but Yurio was mostly doing it to get out of doing the online college class he took. He had been talking all his classes, college, and high school, all online ever since he came to Hasestu, nearly 7 years ago. It seemed surreal to yurio, that it had been 7 years since everything had happened.

He quickly checked the clock and went onto the ice. The ice was split lengthways into 4 equal sections by orange cones. On the wall of each section was convince a piece of paper labeling witch class went in each section. The two sections with the most wall space already had classes going on and were for the tiny kids who couldn't have been any younger than 2 and were too little for normal skates. Basics 2, the class Yurio was supervising, was in the center-right section.

Over a course of 15 minutes, 6 confused and small children who looked to be about 4 to 5 years old went into Yurio's section and formed a line. They were all dressed in bike helmets, winter jackets, thick gloves, and snow pants, with name tags on their helmets. A few kids even had knee pads and shoulder pads on, causing Yurio to mentally roll his eyes. Sure you could fall down in skating, but it wasn't nearly as dangerous as these parents seemed to think. And the rink wasn't at all cold enough to need all that snow gear. Yurio cold remember when Maria was this age, and The Japanese Yuri had tried to put Maira in all that crap. Thankfully Viktor was able to shoot the idea down. If you fall, you fall, and then you learn how to not do it again. That was Yurio's perspective on the whole thing.

The child on the very left end of the line was covered head-to-toe in emoji clothing and was named Airi. "Excuse me?" She inquired. "Where is Nikiverof-sensi?"

"He's sick, so I'm going to be your teacher today," Yurio responded, putting on the same face and tone of voice he used with Maira when he was teaching her.

"Ok." Airi accepted.

The boy right next to her, Ichirou was in different shades of blue and was the only kid that was wearing Hockey skates. Why the heck would this kids parents put him in hockey skates?! They didn't have a toepick, making them completely different and almost impossible to do any real skating

"What stuff are we going to do?" Ichirou asked, in a voice so soft that Yurio could barely hear him. before the girl next to him, Yumi shoved him.

"Ichirou knows how class works, he just wants to race!" Yumi shouted, her pigtails bouncing all around. Even stupider than Ichiro's parents, someone had decided it was a good idea to stick Yumi's hair through the holes of her pink bike helmet, creating pigtails. Yurio swore that if he ever had any kids of his own with Otabek, in 10 or 20 years or something, he would never be as incompetent kids' parents.

"Woah let's not shove people today!" Yurio corrected, as he skated over to Ichirou, and crouched down to comfort the boy.

But of course, the second he calmed Ichirou down, he turned around, and The girl next to Yumi, Hibiki, had pushed her for shoving Ichirou, and the two were this close to being in a full-blown fight. Yurip quickly skated in the middle of them and pushed them away from each other,

"HEY! There will be no more fighting today!" Yurio scolded, as he pushed the two away from teacher. "Yumi, go stand next to Airi, and Hibiki, you go over to the other end of the line!" He instructed, and the girls show each other one more dirty look and skated to opposite ends of the line.

"What's your name?" Noa, the girl no next to Hibiki confidently inquired.

"Yuri Plisetsky." Yurio cooly replied. "Feel free to call me whatever you like."

Noa's eyes got wide."Are you the skater guy that was on TV my big brother watched before Christmas?!"

"Yep." Yurio smiled. Kids could be weird and unobservant, but pretty funny.

"Plisetsky-Sensi?" The last girl, Shinju, called.

"What is it?"

"Are we still going to have a normal class, even though NIkiverof-Sensi isn't here?" She poultry wondered.

"You bet," Yurio answered, pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket that the Japanese Yuri had sent him earlier with the lesson plan.

Roughly 40 minutes later, Yurio had done all of the painfully annoying exercises that The Japanese Yuri had left him. He, of course, had skipped all the cutesy language that all the other institutes used. In fact, the kids seemed to understand better when he talked to them normally, making the annoying voice completely irrelevant in Yurio's mind.

"Can we do a race now?" Ichirou very quietly inquired.

"Absolutely." Yurip agreed, and the faces of all 6 kids lit up. They very quickly got in a straight line parallel to the short end of the wall, and yurio skated over to the other end.

"WAIT!" Hibiki card. "Aren't you gonna race too?"

"Nope." Yurio declared shaking his head. "I'm going to ref and see who wins."

"Why? Are you scared you're going to lose?!" Yumi taunted.

Yurio was suddenly faced with a slip second important decision. Under any other circumstances, this was a dare to wipe the floor with whoever the fuck decided to challenge him. But This time, the challengers were a bunch of four-year-olds who had absolutely no idea what they were getting themselves into. Even if Yuri had never set foot on the ice in his life, he was still 3 times the height of all these kids, making it an unfair race. And he couldn't just half-ass it and let the kids win, whenever he was in any commotion of any kind his brain automatically re-wired to WIN AT ALL COSTS mode, despite the situation. When Maria had first learned to skate, she had challenged him to a few races, and try as he might, yurio just couldn't seem to lose.

"Нет" Yurio turned down, half of his instincts screaming at turning down a challenge, but the other half reminding him that Kids, epic apply these kids, don't take loss lightly.

Ichirou pouted, and Yurio had the immediate reaction of 'shit-i-fucked-up-i-fucked-up-bad-wrong-answer'

"Why don't I ref on this one, and next race I'll join you?" Yurio quickly offered, trying to stop the tears welling up In Ichiro's eyes.

"OK!" the entire group cheered and got in position to race.

"To the other wall of the rink and back!" Yurio cheered, "The winner is the first person to touch both hands on this wall wins, on 3! 3! 2! 1! GO!"

All six kids took off and were a lot faster than Yurio thought they were going to be. And he could see now why Ichirou was so desperate to race, and Yumi was so against the idea. Both of them were in a near tie for first, and it took a whole heck of a lot more of Yurio's concentration to figure out who was actually winning.

But despite all of the competition, the cutest girl in the whole class, Shinju, came up from behind at the last second and touched the wall a split second before Yumi and Ichirou could get to it.

"NO FAIR!" Yumi screamed, and Yurio quickly skated over to stop any fights before they happen.

"Is too fair!' Shinju defense, losing as if she was going to break into tears herself.

"Woah Woah Woah!" Yurio called, kneeling down to diffuse the situation. "Yumi, Shinju fairly won, but that doesn't mean you can't win next time. If you put in the work trying to improve your time, then you could get her for sure."

"REally?" Yumi gasped her pigtails parking right up.

"Totally!" Yurio responded, pulling his phone out of his pocket, and turned to address the group. "And if you all want, you would race across the ice one at a time, and I could keep a running tally of who's the fastest."

"YEA!!!!" The kids cheered.

Pork cutlet bowl: So, how'd it go?!

Me: great, I had to stop Yumi from fighting nearly everyone there at some point, but the kids really enjoyed it.

Pork Cutlet bowl: Great! I got some texts from the parents, and the kids all loved the time trials you did. I'll definitely do that in my future classes.

Me: You really should. It's fascinating seeing them try their hardest to beat here times.

Pork cutlet Bowl: They also told me that you seemed to be enjoying yourself too

Me: Duh

Pork cutlet bowl: SO what if I told you that turns out I need a sub for the next 9-12 months?

Me: I'LL DO IT

Pork cutlet bowl: I thought you would. We can do paperwork and all that stuff later

Me: Also what the hell could make you need a sub for that long?

Pork cutlet bowl: Remember how your Christmas present to us was taking Masha for that night?

Me: Dear god what the hell did you do

Pork cutlet bowl: Yea I kinda sorta might be a tiny bit pregnant

Me:I'd say fuck you but it seems Viktor already has that covered


End file.
